Scales and Whitebeards
by BlueMoonChaos
Summary: The ASL brothers move to the Grand Line much earlier than in Canon!verse due to problems at home. After a few years, they meet up with the Whitebeard Pirates and Ace is kidnapped after the fight. What the Whitebeards weren't prepared for was the two brothers who followed after them. Luffy's a Dragon but still has his Devil Fruit. Smart!Luffy Strong!ASL Bros AU! Rated M
1. A Fiery Meeting!

**AN:** **This Luffy will be a bit smarter and act a little differently than Canon!Luffy. He will still very much be Luffy, as only Luffy can be, but you** ** _will_** **notice differences. His background story will also be very different in some regards. He still will have spent some years in Foosha Village, met Shanks and got his straw hat, and met Sabo and Ace (no real difference in how he meets them either). Just saying this now, Sabo is alive and with them. He was saved by Dragon (again no difference) but was returned to his brothers a few months after the accident and after Luffy had been hurt by the bear. Luffy, Ace, and Sabo will all be a little stronger than in Canon because of growing up with a Dragon!Luffy and Luffy also did something special with them (not saying what, you will have to wait and see). First time writing a fic so please tell me what you think.**

 **Anyway, Disclaimer Time! You recognize it, I don't own it! Don't own One Piece, Whitebeards, Ace, Sabo, Luffy (though I would** ** _love_** **to be friends with them, imagine the fun mayhem and chaos that could be created!) or any other characters you may or may not know. Plot and some other things are mine. Don't want to list them as that would take forever and I'll end up forgetting something anyhow. Also, not doing this for profit or as a scheme to take over the world; doing it because a friend won't stop bugging the crap out of me so I figure this will shut them up…for a while at least. On another note, don't want to have to do the 'disclaimer' thing again and again for each chapter because I just** ** _know_** **that I will forget to do it at some point and that might cause issues. So! Disclaimer Note: all things in the story belong to their respective parties (this goes for each and every chapter unless stated otherwise)!**

"Hello"—normal speaking

 _'Hello'_ —thoughts

/Hello/—thought-speak

/( _Hello_ )/—thought-impression and will mostly be used for emotions being transmitted between brothers, though might throw in a brief image description every now and then (still deciding how to do that so if any ideas PM or add in review if you write one)

 **Chapter 1: A Fiery Meeting! Ace Gets KO'd**

Luffy was bored.

Hungry too, but mostly bored.

Ace was going onto his fifth day of fighting of fighting that big blue fishy dude and Luffy had left early that morning before the sun rose so that he could get a snack before breakfast.

Sabo remained behind to continue watching their brother to make sure he wouldn't do anything too stupid (with half the crew who wanted to watch the show, the others remaining on the ship until their turn came). Basically, Sabo had gotten saddled with babysitting Ace and monitoring their crew, the Spade Pirates. He was a little worried at leaving his brothers but trusted Sabo to handle things…and he was hungry!

Noticing his little brother's dilemma (Luffy really didn't want to leave in case he missed something, but the sounds coming from his stomach were really getting on the blond's nerves), Sabo told Luffy it would be best if he got his snack now. It wasn't very light out and dawn wouldn't arrive for a while yet, so it was safer for him to go hunting now as he'd be harder to see in his other form. Plus, everyone was tired enough that they shouldn't really notice Luffy's absence unless he missed breakfast.

Seeing as many of their crew would be wandering the island, though mostly back and forth between Ace's fight and the ship, Luffy decided to go fishing instead of hunting on land. It had been a week or so since he last got to really enjoy his other form outside and he had been getting a little twitchy because of it. Going for a nice swim and catching lots of tasty fish would help calm him down and also give him something to do instead of just watch Ace have all the fun fighting someone strong like Big Fish-Dude.

After another ten minutes of wandering about Luffy finally came upon a small, secluded stretch of beach. Nobody would be able to see him Shift here and it was unlikely that anyone would think to look for him anytime soon, seeing as the sun wouldn't be up for another hour or so. Cautiously, Luffy scented the air to make sure no one was nearby or had been to the beach recently. He quickly tried to sense if anyone had followed him but thankfully that also came up blank.

Finding nothing, he immediately began to strip out of his clothes. Off went the baggy pair of jean-shorts that reached the tops of his knees, quickly joined by a bright red vest with brass buttons on the sandy ground. Luffy only ever bothered to wear underwear if he was sleeping (he treated them like pajama bottoms) or if it was cold, not liking the extra layer of garments and the seconds it would take to be rid of them if he wanted to Shift quickly. He kicked off his sandals, letting them land haphazardly near the pile of cloth, and gently removed his precious straw hat and set that on top his discarded clothes. Before leaving, Luffy made sure to put a couple small dry stones on the hat's brim; last time the wind almost took it and he didn't want to lose his treasured hat.

Turning back to the sea, Luffy willed himself to change from his gangly and puny Human form, to his more comfortable and relaxing scaled self. Since eating the Gum-Gum Devil Fruit when he was about six, the transformation no longer caused him any real discomfort.

Skin became darker, thickening as it turned tough and leathery. Then his strong scales began to form on his body. Though naturally pitch-black in color, because of their almost glossy and burnished look they shone with hints of dark teals, purples, and reds when in the sunlight. At night, under the moon and stars, his scales softly reflected bits of dark silvery-blue.

His face stretched and contorted, becoming triangular as it grew in size and took on more lizard-like qualities. Eyes lightened to dark amber as they grew and moved more to the sides of his head. Above, two polished-looking sharp onyx horns formed on the top of his head and curved back before making a small dip and pointing up; a few much smaller, and not quite as sharp, onyx horns grew along the back of his jaw and the top of his eye-ridges. Another small set led up to the base of the main horns.

Teeth shape into small daggers. The canids turning into fangs, with the top pair poking out over his bottom jaw a bit; the lower barely staying concealed. Back molars grow larger and their edges sharpen, suited to scraping flesh from bone before the bone itself is crushed and eaten.

His skinny grew long and many times thicker, ropes of strong muscle emerging to hold his enlarged head. The black scales forming along the front of his throat become denser and larger, packed close and tightly overlapping one another to protect his otherwise vulnerable neck.

A long, sinuous and elegant tail grows as his spine lengthens; three pairs of spined fins forming on either side towards the tail's end.

The fins are more like a cobra's hood in terms of resemblance, except with blade-like scales lining the outer edge. Relaxed, the fins are barely discernable from the rest of the tail, as they rest in soft-scaled grooves along the limb. While the outer scales of the fins are thick and strong, the inner portions (namely the connecting muscle and where the fins attach to the tail) can be easily damaged; the grooves offer the fins and tail portion protection. When tensed, the leather-covered muscle (though thin, is still much thicker than his wing membranes) pushes against the edged spine that is normally hidden in the scaled "sleeve". Long scales overlap along the outer-portion of the fin to form a razored edge, using the spine in the sleeve as a brace. When fully extended, the webbing of the fin (and consequently, the spine's sheath) only reaches about three-quarters along the spine. Sabo believes these bladed fins are relatively useless in terms of Luffy using them to fly, and more likely function as weapons.

Chest expanding, Luffy felt his ribs shift as new chords of muscle rippled into being to support the powerful leathery wings he could feel beginning to form on his back. Shoulders and hips moved to better support the added bulk of his changing form. His arms and legs twinge a bit as they, too, change into their larger and more muscular counterparts.

Hands and feet grow deadly talons matching his horns, fingers and toes lengthening and thickening to match his developing paws. His thumbs move back from the rest of his fingers, shifting around so that they face backwards. The big toes move to a similar position, his back feet elongate as they become slightly larger versions of the front pair. Thick pads develop at the base of each foot where the four clawed toes converge, allowing him to more comfortably walk and run on all fours.

For whatever reason, the last couple of things to form are the pair of soft-scaled "ears" perched on either side of his head (by the outer side of his large horns' base) and his mane.

Like his scales, the soft and fluffy strands of "hair" that comprise his thick mane are jet black. Despite looking like a horse's mane, his did not grow out of his thick hide; the "hairs" were actually long tufts that formed at the end of the scales that ran along his entire spine. Unlike the scales, his mane only gives off a dark blue sheen under the sun or a silver-gilt dark teal in the moonlight. The mass of soft hair starts at the top of his head, right before the base of his two large horns and running between them. It continues down his long neck and along the middle of his back, right to the very tip of his tail.

As the final changes to his muscles take place and his wings finish growing, Luffy falls forward to stand on all four paws. Shuffling his wings and giving his neck and head a shake to rid the tingling of settling muscle. The whole process took little less than a minute but it still gives him a small rush all the same.

Taking a brief moment to stretch his limbs and get reacquainted with his Dragon form, Luffy raises his snout to scent the air again to make sure nobody is nearby while also listening to the surrounding area. His senses are many times sharper in this form than his Human one (though they are still sharper than that of a normal person's even then), though his sense of touch is hampered by his tough scales and thick skin. There is a spot on his nose that's fairly sensitive and useful for gauging an object's temperature, though… Still, this form was much better than his smaller, weaker, and squishier one.

Looking back over himself, Luffy figures he's about thirty feet from snout to tail-tip. Stretching his wings out while being careful of the cliffs on either side—this beach is even smaller in this form—his wingspan looks to have grown as well since Sabo last measured. It seems to be a few feet wider than he his long now; hopefully it meant that his wings were finally starting to grow larger.

 _'Sabo should measure them again…they might be big enough now I can start trying to fly!'_

Tucking them back in, Luffy makes his way into the sea (at least in this form it doesn't affect him despite having Devil Fruit powers) to go catch his pre-breakfast snack. He sends a quick thought to Sabo, letting his brother know he has changed and is about to start his quest for food. Normally he would let Ace know too, but the young dragon doesn't want to distract his eldest brother while he is fighting; he promised not to interfere unless necessary after all.

* * *

Sabo couldn't help the sigh that escaped him as he watched Ace's fight about to reach its fifth noon. He was also getting slightly worried about their youngest brother's continued absence.

Luffy had come back for breakfast but left again soon after, quietly mentioning to Sabo that he thought he sensed something while out fishing and wanted to check it out. Looking at Ace, Sabo could tell he had noticed Luffy's extended absence as well.

 _'I'm worried about Ace just dropping due to hunger instead of his normal narcolepsy fits.'_ Sabo paused at that thought, quirking his head at a slight angle. It _had_ been five days straight of fighting for the older raven but, surprisingly, there hadn't been a single narcolepsy attack during that time. ' _Huh. At this rate he could go for a new record…'_

It was getting to be almost time for lunch, and another glance at the fight before him showed that it was finally winding down to a close.

Ace looked exhausted and the large Fishman—Jinbei, _Warlord_ Jinbei of the Sun Pirates—seemed to be reaching the end of his rope as well. The couple of other Spade pirates watching were getting ready to change shifts with those back on their ship, _Wild Card_ , and start lunch.

' _About damn time too! They both barely allowed each other a couple breaks this entire time to drink some water.'_ He couldn't help the small smirk this thought produced.

The only reason the two fighters drank even a little water at all was because he and Luffy had chucked canteens of water at them. Sabo had poured water from one of their crewmate's canisters on the canteen he held before throwing it at Ace. Wouldn't do if his logia ability allowed it to pass through him now would it? Luffy hurled the one he held at the Fishman's head (managing a direct hit to the back of it that probably stung the guy a good deal); he'd still been a tad upset at not being able to fight the Fishman too.

 _'Soon as Luffy gets his scaly butt back here I'll go and grab some lunch too_ ,' Sabo mused. Then he felt a slight tingling in the back of his mind and gave a small smile, before quickly tensing and fighting the urge to frown. Something had upset Luffy.

/( _Worry Confused Protect!_ )/

/What's wrong Lu?/ Sabo hastily scanned his surroundings, taking note of who was where and how Ace was doing before giving Luffy most of his focus (never all, otherwise he would be left completely open and that was a mistake he won't make again).

/Ship! A really big ship is coming with strong people onboard! One feels really, really strong. Feels kinda like Shanks did./

Sabo couldn't keep the frown from his face now, and tilted his black top hat down to help hide his expression. This wasn't good. It was likely Whitebeard and his crew or another Emperor (it was unlikely to be someone else, Luffy had said that one of the newcomers felt similar to Shanks). There was also the chance that it was another Warlord on their way here. Either those aboard the ship had heard news of the fight or had come close enough to sense it.

/How long until the ship gets here do you think?/

/Soon! Coming from beach now. Wasn't seen. But ship will be here real soon! How's Ace? The fight?/

Hearing twin grunts of pain, Sabo turned his attention back to the ongoing fight—which apparently had _just_ ended. Both fighters were now flat on their backs and breathing hard, completely exhausted and mumbling to each other. He felt a small smirk work itself into existence.

/Ace is exhausted, but he'll live. Fight is over and looks to be a tie./

/( _Happy Smug Proud_ ) But Ace didn't lose, right? Didn't beat Big Fish-Dude, but didn't lose?/

/( _Amused Happy_ ) No Lu, he didn't lose. And 'Big Fish-Dude' is named _Jinbei_ , and he is a _Warlord_ and very _strong_ so don't make him mad. Calling him 'Fish-Dude' is rude and not nice. /

Looking around again and paying more attention to their surroundings, Sabo noticed a huge ship that was quickly making its way to the island. It was a little difficult to tell, but the bow of the giant ship looked to be in the form of a white whale.

' _Isn't the main ship of the Whitebeard Pirates a big ship with a white whale figurehead?_ '

Judging the distance and speed of the great vessel, it appeared that they only had a few minutes at most before those aboard made landfall. If what Luffy mentioned is even the slightest bit true, then only the three brothers would stand a chance against this new crew (and Ace didn't look able to go another round with a fresh opponent).

Standing up from his reclined position in the shade of a huge tree (which somehow escaped the five-day battle unharmed when many of its surrounding fellows were in pieces) and grabbing their brother's bright orange cowboy hat, Sabo ran over to the crew who had been watching the fight's conclusion. They were preparing to tote Ace back to the ship for treatment and had only just noticed the massive ship weighing anchor offshore behind the plateau where their Captain had been fighting.

"Quickly get everyone to the ship and ready to sail! Luffy, Ace, and I will cover you until everything is set. Go!" Sabo turned to go grab Ace and prepare for their escape—and just where the Hell's Luffy?—when he was stopped by numerous protests from the Spade Pirates.

"Captain!"

"The Hell! We aren't leaving—"

"You can't expect us to abandon our Captains"

"We're running!?"

"We want to fight too dammit!"

"WOULD YOU ALL SHUT UP!" Turning an icy glare on them all, causing shivers down the crew's spines, Sabo made eye contact with each of them. "I am not telling you to abandon us or suggest we force Ace to fight when he is so rundown. Luffy and I will help cover him, and also cover you while you guys make sure we have a clear means of retreat. Understand? Now GO!"

The Spades, with only a few gripes and disgruntled "Aye, aye, Captain", left to ready the _Wild Card_. Sabo could still hear them muttering and cursing as they left down the path to the ship.

Turning back to Ace, Sabo swiftly strode to his brother's side and filled him on what he hadn't heard. He made sure to keep quiet about the new crew possibly belonging to Whitebeard though; Ace might not leave with them if he heard that little tidbit.

* * *

Jinbei tiredly watched the young blond man that had been present for most of his fight with the upstart Super Rookie. Lying on the ground exhausted, the whale shark Fishman's attention had been drawn to the young man who rarely left the spot under the far tree during the past five days.

The boy looked as if he was listening for something before he suddenly tensed up and pulled the black hat down, covering his face as he tilted his head to look at the ground. The blond—honestly, he looked like a _gentleman_ almost with those clothes…and was that a pipe strapped to his back!?—looked up and then scanned the area, pausing for a moment as he looked at the battered captain prone form on the ground opposite from himself.

Dredging up the remains of his strength, Jinbei struggled to a sitting position when he saw the blue-clad person get up and head over to where their crew was assembled. Sitting made his eyes fuzz slightly and his head ring a smidgen, before fading (though he still had a massive headache). Looking over himself quickly, while still keeping an eye on the blond and the fire-user on the ground, Jinbei took stock of his injuries.

There were several burns scattered across his front, with the worst being on his arms and hands, and only a few small ones on his back. He couldn't feel any broken bones, though his right shin and both forearms definitely held fractures…probably his left cheekbone too judging by how swollen it felt. Seeing as his head was still ringing lowly and he had some difficulty focusing, it was likely he suffered a minor concussion as well. Other than malnutrition, dehydration, and extreme exhaustion, he felt that the rest of his wounds were rather minor and nothing to be concerned over.

Honestly, he hadn't expected for Fire-Fist to be that strong; the loud Rookie (he recalled hearing about a Super Rookie who went by Fire-Fist had recently made it to the New World) definitely earned some respect for his abilities and tenacity at the very least from the Fishman.

Shouting from the other side of the clearing brought his attention back to the challenging captain's crew. The blond was ordering about the Spade Pirate crew and receiving vehement refusal from his shipmates. Even Jinbei could feel the younger man's frustration before witnessing the outburst that followed the crew's cries.

The crew left the clearing with loud growls and grumbling as they headed, he believed, back their ship. Jinbei turned to keep the blond insight as he headed over to help the one who challenged him—Ace he said his name was—to stand up before plopping an orange cowboy hat, with smiley beads on the front of it, on his dark head.

The two seemed to act differently with each other than with the other members of their crew, much closer. Jinbei noticed that they acted more freely and even the blond's expression was more open than it had been just a couple minutes previously when he had been talking to his fellow crewmates. This sight brought the large Fishman back to what he had just observed.

' _It is unusual that the crew doesn't listen to their first mate. They won't last long in the New World if this is normal…_ '

Then Jinbei clued-in to what he had heard during the crew's various protests. ' _They called the coat-wearing blond "captain"? Isn't he the first mate and the hot-head the captain? How are there_ two _captains for a single crew of this size!?_ '

"You look confused."

Jinbei started at the voice that came from close to his side. Looking over he saw another boy—messy black hair, big dark brown eyes, loose shorts, blinding red vest, sandals, and a straw hat he felt was familiar somehow—staring at him from only a couple yards away.

 _Boy_ described him quite well. What was such a young human doing all the way out here in the New World and with a pirate crew of all things? More importantly, how did Jinbei not even notice him before now?

He stared at the boy in mild shock for a minute, not quite sure what to say and wondering how long the boy had been _right there_.

The child stared right back at him with a rather blank look in his eyes before smiling and elaborating on his earlier statement.

"You made an odd face when Sabo was called 'Captain' by everyone and then looked at Ace. Is it because Ace was also called 'Captain'? They are both Captains of the crew."

With a nod that appeared to signify he felt the conversation over and done with, the red-vested boy left the slightly more confused Fishman behind to go stand next to the other two Spade Pirate Captains.

Clueing back into the conversation between the three, Jinbei was met with more confusion as he watched their interactions.

* * *

Ace was being difficult and it was starting to get on Sabo's already frayed nerves.

After five continuous days of (essentially) non-stop brawling against someone was not only a _fishman_ but a freaking damn _Warlord_ —because the guy being about ten-times stronger than the average human wasn't enough somehow—the idiot looked like he was about ready to keel over.

Currently, Sabo was holding Ace up with one arm around the older's waist and his other hand holding Ace's slightly less injured arm across his shoulders. Luffy had skipped over from where Jinbei was still sitting with an odd expression on his face. It looked like the fishman had been seriously shocked and/or confused by something and Sabo didn't even _want_ to know what Luffy had to put it there. He did _not_ have the patience to deal with Luffy's crazy antics _and_ a retarded flame-brain right now.

"You and Lu head back to the ship! I'll cover you guys and then give them the slip and follow after."

" _You_ can barely stand on your own damnit! How the hell are you going to ' _cover_ ' us?"

"I—"

"And just how are going to follow us!? You look like you tried to storm a damned Marine base by yourself…and _lost_!"

" _I'M NOT THAT BAD!_ "

At this Luffy turned to Ace and, with a completely straight face, said, "Right. You look like you picked a fight with Big Fish-Dude—" "That is rude Luffy, his name is Jinbei." "—and made us sit and watch for five days only to _tie_!"

Seeing both brothers just staring at him, with Ace starting to look a little red, he continued, "It was _boring_ , next time I want to fight and I'll win! It won't end in a stupid tie."

Sabo started cursing as he tried to hold back Ace—' _Is he seriously hissing and growling!?_ '—and prevent the older's attempts to strangle their giggling little brother. "Luffy knock it off! You are NOT helping sh—Damnit Ace! I'm going to knock your ass out and _drag_ that charbroiled _brick_ you call a brain back! By your _ears_! Quit it!"

"Get over here you rubber-brained idiot! I'll only kill you a little!"

"Shishishishi!"

" _I'll kill both of you damn idiots!_ "

* * *

Walking next to Pops, the first thing Marco heard was yelling. Then he heard what sounded like giggles among multiple threats and curses.

He looked over to Thatch, Izou, and Vista who had also accompanied their Father to the island. All three wore expressions varying between amused and complete bafflement at the noise they were hearing.

They'd heard news of Jinbei being challenged to a fight by one of the Super Rookies looking to take Pops' head. What made Pops decide to pay this newbie to the New World a visit was discovery that the challenger was none other than "Fire-Fist Ace". After reading a couple articles on him and a few of his crew's exploits, Whitebeard had wanted to see if the Rookie would become one of his Sons if he ever made it to the New World. Judging by his expression then and now, Marco could tell that he wasn't really going to take 'no' for an answer either.

Still, looking at his brothers' faces before turning back to what was happening ahead, he saw none of them were prepared for the scene they came upon.

First person they noticed was Jinbei who was sitting, and definitely looking worse for wear, with an almost dumbfounded expression plastered on his face.

More shouts, curses, and laughter brought the Whitebeards' attention to the three noise-makers opposite their Fishman friend.

The blond member of the trio (who looked very familiar to them for some reason) was dressed in gentlemanly attire that included a top hat of all things, and was holding onto and yelling at the one who would hopefully become their new brother. Looking closer at the blond's face, Izou thought he could see some sort of scarring around the boy's left eye. His hat and hair kept getting in the way, so it was difficult to tell.

Ace, with his signature orange cowboy hat, scuffed and torn yellow shirt with equally ratted black baggy shorts, looked like he had been someone's punching bag and was on the verge of collapsing. Yet he was somehow kicking up a fuss trying to get at the third, and smallest, member of the lively group.

The young boy, he had to be much younger than the other two for how small he was, wore a kill-me-red vest with baggy blue shorts and a straw hat—honestly, why does that hat annoy Marco so much?—was bouncing around the older two giggling like he was having the time of his life.

Suddenly, the boy ceased his antics and seemed to say something to the older pair. They immediately shut up and froze, turning their heads and taking notice of the new arrivals for the first time.

"Why didn't you say something sooner, Lu?" Ace asked as he whipped his head toward the smaller boy.

"I told Sabo, who told the crew and you earlier." The boy, now identified as 'Lu', responded with a finger up his nose.

"Yeah, but you could have told us they had arrived or something…"

"He did, Ace. You were just being too stubborn—"

Marco tuned out the boys at this point. It sounded like it was just going to be another argument anyway and he got enough headaches listening to his siblings that he didn't want to deal with these three.

Turning to Vista, he asked, "Can you go check on Jinbei and see if he needs to take a trip to the infirmary?"

"Are you kidding? He looks like crap! Visty, if you _don't_ take him to see Bay and let him go, she will hunt you down and skin you alive~!" Thatch laughed at how his brother paled at those words.

Whitebeard chuckled at his sons' antics as he watched them. Upon centering his attention back on the trio in front of him, his smile turned into a frown.

The blond was in the process of trying to drag the injured Ace away while telling him, repeatedly, to "stop being an idiot already". The little one, 'Lu' he'd heard one say, had gone around behind Ace and covered the teen's mouth with his hand and kept peaking over at him and his sons. Almost as if he was keeping watch of what they were doing while the two were trying to escape with (a very uncooperative) Ace; the whole time Lu's hand never left Ace's mouth.

Not wanting to let the fiery teen he wanted to take in as his newest Family member escape, Whitebeard stepped forward. Planting the butt of his bisento into the ground at his feet, the giant man cleared his throat and boomed, "So who's the brat that wants to take my head!?"

* * *

The two younger brothers stopped short in their attempts of removing Ace from the area, sharing a look around the struggling raven between them. Both asking the silent question of 'what now?'.

Ace took advantage of this distraction and threw his brothers' arms off him, wiping the blood from Luffy's cut palm off his lips.

While Luffy had been trying, and only somewhat succeeding, to quieten his older brother in their attempt to retreat, the action had another purpose behind it.

After that scary incident soon after reaching the Grand Line where his brothers were badly wounded, Luffy found that their bodies had an easier time accepting his blood. Knowing this, he would usually try to get them to take some whenever they were heavily injured (though Luffy was still cautious about how much they got). Sabo and Ace would give a token protest or two, but would always end up caving to Luffy's 'puppy-face'.

Five fresh and very strong fighters (one being an Emperor) against the three brothers (one of which was barely able to stand) was not a good situation to be in. Luffy decided that he had to risk being noticed and, forming one of his fingers into a talon behind his back to make a slit in his palm, moved behind Ace and slapped the slit palm over his older brother's mouth. Luffy was relieved that, when he quickly glanced at them, none of the other pirates seemed to notice what he'd done. In addition to being a bit quieter (physically, mentally he was still arguing with Luffy and Sabo) and making their hopeful retreat a touch easier, Ace was now getting a healing boost just in case things went south.

' _Which appears to be the direction we're now headed for_ ,' Luffy absently thought.

"Ace, what the hell are you doing? Get back here!" Sabo demanded as he and Luffy tried to grab hold of their brother again.

Ace either dodged or shook them off as he stepped forward a few more feet towards his 'enemy'. Sensing his brothers coming up behind him, he shuffled a little left to allow Sabo his usual spot at his right while keeping Luffy between and slightly behind them.

Luffy noticed the guarded stance his brothers took in front of him but chose to ignore it; he was more focused on the new opponents before them.

While they didn't _feel_ like bad people, the huge one was definitely up to something. Though Luffy didn't know what these people were after, he could tell from how Giant Mustache-Man kept looking at Ace that it likely was related to his brother. He traded his previous blank look for a scowl.

Looking to Ace, Luffy whispered, "Ace…something's off. They want something."

Ace and Sabo turned their heads slightly toward their baby brother, showing him they were listening while still keeping their eyes locked onto the imposing figures before them.

/( _Worry Fear_ ) I think they are after Ace. They keep looking at you and Giant Mustache-Man seems more focused on you compared to me and Sabo./

Sabo and Ace shared a look before the fire-user took another step away from his brpthers and shouted, "I'm the one who is going to take your head!"

The huge man's light yellow eyes glared down at Ace before gruffly responding, "Hmph. Very well, I'll take you on!"

Ace was completely focused on the man he had vowed to defeat in his effort to leave the shadow of his cursed father behind him, so he didn't notice what was occurring behind him with Luffy.

Thankfully, Sabo had. He could feel Luffy's rising irritation and worry. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the younger had stiffened at Whitebeard's declaration and his hands were clenched and shaking. Seeing Whitebeard move again (he appeared to be saying something to those with him), Sabo turned his gaze forward as he tried to get Luffy's attention with his mind.

/( _Frustrated Worry Unhappy_ ) Ace is hurt! Giant Mustache-Man can _see_ that. He knows Ace will not win this fight. Ace shouldn't fight! /

/( _Calm_ ) You need to calm down Lu. I can feel your other presence leaking out./ Looking at Ace, Sabo could tell his brother was too focused on Whitebeard to notice the presence their little brother was starting to give off.

/( _Angry_ ) Giant-Man is only toying with Ace. He is planning something. He wants something with Ace. I don't like it! Need to get Ace. Need to leave!/

/( _Calm Calm Worry_ ) Lu calm down now! We are right here with Ace. We will help Ace. You need settle down NOW before one of them notices!/ Sabo had been keeping watch of the other pirates and had seen the bored-looking blond with weird hair start to eye the brothers, looking a little too carefully at them for comfort. The redhead next him also seemed to be inspecting the brothers. Even Whitebeard briefly paused in his glare-match with Ace to sweep his gaze over them, settling it back on the oldest brother after a few moments.

/( _Sorry Calm Sorry_ )/ Luffy quickly got a grip on his emotions, burying the primal part of him that was agitated at what happening and the threat seemingly directed at his oldest brother.

Sabo let out a quiet, barely noticeable sigh as the dangerous presence rapidly faded. They couldn't let anyone know what Luffy was no matter what. If anybody found out he would be in danger.

* * *

Marco had been idly watching Vista, soon joined by Izou, trying to convince a reluctant Jinbei to visit the infirmary (not that he could blame the guy, their sister who was the Head Nurse was terrifying) while his Father was engaging Ace. He absently acknowledged the order his Captain gave to leave the coming fight to him and to not interfere as he looked after the finally departing trio—Izou and Vista almost dragging Jinbei after them.

His attention was jerked back towards the trio of teens standing before the Whitebeard Pirates, a quick glance at his Father showed the older man had felt it too. It wasn't too obvious just yet, the others hadn't sensed it from what he could tell, but it was steadily growing. From looking at the rookie pirates standing before them, he couldn't quite tell which of them this sensation was coming from.

He almost wanted to say it was Haki. It felt similar to Whitebeard's Conqueror's Haki, but not as refined. There was a more wild and predatory edge to the growing presence. To be frank, this _thing_ he was sensing unnerved him and made the phoenix in him unsettled. Unfortunately, before he could discern who was responsible the presence faded from existence. Marco decided to keep his eyes on the boys in case the presence came back though.

Whitebeard also took in the Spade Pirates standing before, trying to sense where that primal presence had originated. Finding nothing, he slowly advanced towards the fiery brat that had challenged him. Seeing the other two brats crouch into fighting stances, prepared to join the challenger, he sent a blast of Haki at them (making sure to avoid Ace).

The boys landed several dozen feet behind their captain. The top-hat wearing one hitting the ground and skipping once before righting himself and skidding has he landed in a crouch, pole held out for balance; the straw-hat boy flipping in mid-air before landing on the balls of his sandaled feet, a hand flung in front and digging into the ground to slow his slide to stop. Both were now glaring at the Captain of the Whitebeard Pirates.

' _Cheeky brats. They're all full of spirit._ ' Whitebeard looked at the young captain who was turning back around from seeing where his crewmates had been flung. The brat was now starting flare his flames as he glared at the more experienced pirate. Then Ace, causing the present Whitebeard Pirates' eyes to widen, suddenly exploded.

The Captain of the Spade Pirates literally looked like he had exploded.

Flames raged everywhere, painting the party's surroundings to match the likeness of Hell itself. Whitebeard noted, however, that the greatest amount of flame was centered between the Whitebeard Pirates with the hot-headed challenger and the two other Spades.

"WHAT THE HELL ACE!?"

"ACE!"

"You guys go! Get away from here! I'll cover you!" The fire separating the younger crew from each other grew hotter and the wall of flame became even higher.

Whitebeard raised an eyebrow at this then readied himself to face the one he wished to make his new son.

Thatch found his interest peaked watching the scene. Though the Super Rookie was indeed a complete hot-head, the young man seemed to be very caring of his crew. Earlier he'd also taken an immediate defensive and protective position in regards to the two with him (more so of the much smaller member of the trio), if Thatch judged the youngster's behavior correctly when the older crew were first spotted. Marco, when he flicked his gaze over to the First Division Commander, also had a gleam of mild interest in his normally bored expression.

Refocusing on the match when he saw the younger man lunge towards their Father, Thatch watched the ensuing battle with a detached air about him.

A small sigh escaped him not even a couple minutes later, ' _I can't really even call this match a "fight"...Pops is just blocking the fire-brat, not even using his weapon._ '

Thatch and Marco continued to watch as only a moment later Whitebeard apparently decided that enough was enough, hitting the fiery (literally, the kid was ablaze!) youngster rushing at him in the head. Ace, fire going out, hit the ground. Hard.

Marco, seeing that the brat wasn't on fire anymore and not even twitching, went over to check him. As he walked to Ace's unconscious (hopefully) body, he noticed that the blazing hell around them had also started to die.

' _Those other crewmembers of his aren't here anymore either, yoi. Guess they left their captain behind after all._ ' Using his Observation Haki, the phoenix could barely make out what he believed was Ace's ship a couple miles offshore of the island. Marco was mildly annoyed at the opposing pirate crew for abandoning their captain, even if they had been ordered to do so.

After checking that yes, Ace was indeed still alive (although bruised and beaten to shit), Whitebeard ordered Marco and Thatch to carefully transfer him to the Moby Dick's infirmary.

* * *

 **A/N: So, most of the dialogue between Ace and Whitebeard during their confrontation came from an episode I watched about how the two had first met. Sorry not too much happened in this chapter. It is a bit more of a prologue I guess. Don't think too much will occur in the next one either. Third one, if I manage to write it well (we'll see how that bag of cats ends up), should be more entertaining to read. Just a warning, the Spade Pirates will NOT be a big thing in this story. Don't even know if any will have names either because of that. Thanks for reading (and posting a review if you did so) and I will have the next chapter out soon since it's almost done, probably be in a few days or so. If there is something that I need to fix (like grammar or something) just PM me about it. See ya next time!**

 **P.S. Is it 'strawhat', 'straw-hat', or 'straw hat'? Same with deal with Sabo's hat. Thanks for opinions!**


	2. Whitebeards Capture Ace!

**A/N: Hello again to those who decided to give this story a chance. Bit of a filler chapter, so not too much happens. Wanted to lay down some more info about Luffy and his being a dragon though, so thought might as well do it now so I won't have to later. Working on drawing a picture of what Luffy looks like in his dragon form but might be a while since I am the greatest artist in the world (decent at best in my opinion). So if you have any questions about that just PM or write it in the review. Don't know if all chapters will be as long as these first ones, so just a heads up on that. Going to try for regular updates (am working a few chapters ahead currently) but will notify you if that changes. If you notice any spelling or grammar errors (or anything else along those lines) please just PM me, don't waste a review on that crap. Will go back and fix it as soon as I can.**

 **UPDATE (11/29/16):** **Fixed some grammar issues, added a few tiny details to a couple scenes, revamped some sentences… Nothing big. If you want to find the changes go ahead. Think most obvious is the opening scene here. But still, didn't really change much.**

 **UPDATE (1/18/17): Hello again! Made more changes thanks to this awesome Beta Reader who offered their wondrous help! Everyone, please bow down to the mighty MBalas! She is wonderful person who deserves heaps of praise for reading through this mush and polishing it into something shiny and respectable.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Whitebeards Capture Ace! Brothers' Five Day Separation**

* * *

Darkness. Unending, murky fog that he can't seem to escape. Or did he escape the haze briefly at some point? He can't be sure. Time doesn't exist in the darkness.

A new sensation filters slowly through the inky depths. Pain.

 _Everything_ hurts. _Everywhere_.

He's one, massive bruise. His head— _that is his head, right? Damn, thinking hurts!_ —is the worst, though.

Did he get hit by a sledgehammer? Maybe his head got replaced by a cracked egg and it's slowly leaking everywhere.

 _Fists, a giant, fire…_

 _Shouting, fear, worry…_

 ** _…Where…?_**

The images and emotion trickle into being; fleeting shadows, echoes in the fog.

Yes, he senses pain— _he_ is _pain, hard to miss that_ —but he feels there should be… _more_.

 ** _…Where?_**

Something is missing.

He can't remember how or why but he is sure— _absolutely knew beyond a single doubt!—_ that there's an absence. Something isn't right!

 ** _Where?_**

There should be something aside from this expansive, unending pain. He should be aware of something else too! Something that was— _is!_ —extremely _important_ and is supposed to _always be there_.

 _Foreverandeverandever and always! Neverleavingit'sapromise!_

 ** _Where!_**

He fights against the quicksand darkness, the shadows and inky fog that trap him.

He sightlessly claws through the pain— _more pain, how can there be_ more _?!_ —coming from greater awareness.

 _It_ had to be there… _It_ shouldn't be gone. _Couldn't be gone!_

 ** _Where?!_**

The pain is intense. It flares brighter and brighter against his mind and tries to distract him from his frantic search.

 _Doesn't matter. Doesn'tmatter_ — _don'tcareneedtofind!_

He's struggling, spinning and reaching around the darkness for even a scrap or tiny piece of _it._ The fact that this _important-mystery-something_ is missing disturbs him. Waves of _wrong_ , _so wrong_ , froth around him.

Fear grips him. His worry grows. He _hasn't found it_. _It_ isn't _there_! He needsneeds _needs_ to find _it_!

 ** _WHERE?!_**

Close! He's close to remembering what the absence _is_. Could almost _see_ _it,_ _feel_ _it_ at the edges of his consciousness. A little further and he'll have _it_ —

His mind slows.

A heavy weight drags at him.

The horrid, inky fog is pulling him back into its depths.

He tries to fight. Tries to struggle because he still needs to reach _it_. He needs to be sure that _it_ is still _there_!

Shadows clog his senses. The blinding pain that came with awareness— _accompanied awareness and_ defined _awareness_ —recedes.

 ** _…Where?_**

He's thrashing, clinging to a semblance of consciousness, struggling against the growing exhaustion. He fights.

 _A soft glow amongst shadows. A light more felt than seen._

He writhes! Desperate to reach _it_ , grasp _it_ and never let go.

Cloying murk chokes him— _is suffocating him!_ Yanking him away from what he's been franticly searching for.

 ** _Back! …come back…_**

The creeping darkness thickens and entangles him. An ever-tightening noose that mercilessly stifles and crushes his efforts.

Shadows twine around him, dragging him down—deeper into the fog. That light drifts further and further away, the murk quickly blocking his view of that precious light.

 _A warmth that calls to him. A hazy feeling the precious light is searching for him too._

 ** _…come…back…_**

Darkness seeps into him, numbing him. He sinks farther and farther down.

He vaguely recalls other bursts of consciousness. So similar to this. Of pain…confusion…the desperate need to find that precious _something_ …sometimes getting far enough to find that light…

But always, that same overwhelming sense of exhaustion that isn't quite natural— _not his, doesn't feel like his_ —would abruptly appear and drag him down.

He wants to be pissed. He wants to fight and rage and rail against the invading wave of _tired_ and _dark_ holding him— _strangling and smothering him_. But—

Tired.

He feels so _tired_. Too tired.

He wants rest and peace and _no more pain_.

He lets the shadows take him under completely.

* * *

"How's he doing tonight, yoi?"

Marco walked into the _Moby Dick_ 's rather large infirmary. His question, directed towards the Whitebeard Pirates' best doctor and Head Nurse, Whitey Bay, interrupted the focused silence as she spared only a quick glance for him before returning to her task. She appeared to be fiddling with one of the IV lines attached to their new patient's arm.

It was after one in the morning and their soon-to-be brother, Ace, was laid out on one of the infirmary beds. He was wrapped up in white bandages with an additional wrapping of gauze around the top of his head. The kid could almost be passed off as a clean-looking mummy.

There were IV lines threading out of Ace's arms, nodes were attached to his chest under the covers to monitor his heartrate and breathing, and an oxygen mask was fastened around the teen's nose and mouth to ensure he was getting enough air.

This was now the fifth morning after they had "kidnapped" the Super Rookie at the conclusion of his very short fight—honestly Marco wouldn't even call it that, it was more like a one-hit KO—with their Pops and captain. The kid was looking a lot better than the bruise they brought on board the first day.

"He's healing admirably well," Bay answered. Her tone was thoughtful. "Kid is stronger than he looks, apparently. Stitched up the worst of the lacerations on him, with simple bandaging and monitoring for the rest of them. All of the wounds are healing nicely and only the deeper ones should scar."

The zoan raised an eyebrow at Bay, who had turned towards Ace's figure and wore an expression caught between bafflement, curiosity, and concern. Deciding not ask about what was on her mind yet, he waited for his sister to continue with Ace's medical summary.

"I found some internal bruising on top of the obvious deep tissue trauma. Nothing life-threatening, but he'll still experience significant pain if he moves too much or too quickly. The concussion that Pops gave him is almost gone, and the accompanying fractured skull he received from the same blow is also healing much faster than expected." Bay stared hard at her patient, obviously deep in thought.

"Jinbei mentioned that he thought he broke a couple of the boy's ribs and possibly other bones during their fight. When I examined him, however, all I found were some stress fractures. Not a single break. All they required was some stabilization, so you can thank those for his mummy impersonation. Same story with the rest of his skeletal injuries. Stress fractures and bruised bones at the worst."

Marco took in her furrowed brow and slightly pinched expression as his sister's eyes shifted to focus on the floor. He turned to watch the slumbering teen to give the doctor a moment to collect her thoughts.

Bay sighed and raised a hand to rub her forehead. "Ace's injuries just don't match up with what Jinbei described of their fight. Maybe if it occurred more than a week ago, I'd believe it. Not a few days."

"So he's doing fine and healing well. What is the problem, yoi?" Marco was a little confused on why Bay seemed to be upset. He glanced from her to the bandaged boy on the bed behind her.

' _You'd think she'd be happier that our hopeful brother was doing better than expected…_ ' Marco thought.

"Stop with that face."

The First Commander raised an eyebrow and looked at the Head Nurse.

"Don't give me that look either! It's not like I'm not happy with his progress; truly I am. It means he will be out of my infirmary sooner and bugging the rest of our siblings."

"If it's about his accelerated healing…he _is_ a Devil Fruit user, yoi. We tend to heal faster than normal people." Marco was honestly confused by what Bay was going on about; she should know this about Devil Fruits.

"That is what I am _trying_ to say. Even with a Devil Fruit power he's still healing faster than is normal. He's also tried to wake up a few times already. I had to give him some more meds to get him sleeping again. Kid shouldn't be awake at this stage as it would be too painful. I just finished giving him another dose before you walked in."

At this the two pirates turned to look at the teen passed out on the bed. Both continued to watch the young man for a few minutes until Bay went and fussed with the bed sheets, standing back to join in Marco's silent observation after finishing.

"When would you consider letting him wake and get up out of bed then, yoi?"

Bay couldn't help letting another sigh escape her lips as she replied, "Not for another few days at least. If he's doing better after that then I will consider seeing about when he would be allowed up and about."

"Just let Thatch know when the kid's awake. Guy wants to be one of the first to meet our new brother. Firecracker seems to have made quite the impression on him, yoi."

With a small smirk at Bay's exasperated scoff, the blond commander left the infirmary to go to bed. It was almost two in the morning and he didn't have watch tonight, so sleep sounded good to him.

With another glance at Ace, Whitey Bay left the infirmary under the care of the other two nurses charged with maintaining the peace that night. She planned to go get some sleep herself.

' _I wonder if I should have told Marco that Ace's healing rate seems to be slowing down from when he was first admitted...'_

* * *

Back on the _Wild Card_ , the Spade Pirates were in a righteous fit over the theft of their precious Captain. The small crew alternated between snapping at one another, raging at the Whitebeard pirates together, and trying to cheer up their youngest "unofficial" crewmember (before Luffy shut himself away in the Captains' cabin).

Ace's younger brothers were especially affected by the Captain's abduction. Luffy was inconsolable and Sabo was pissed. Both brothers were worried about Ace, but also mad at him because of his firewall stunt. They were absolutely furious that the Whitebeard pirates had gone and actually _stolen_ him.

The crew had set sail after the _Moby Dick_ as soon as they realized that the larger pirate crew had kidnapped Ace. They'd been following for five days now.

Sabo was worried not only for Ace but their baby brother, too. Since the kidnapping, Luffy had gone from spitting mad at what happened and ranting with the crew to barely eating and secluding himself away. Ace being kidnapped was only part of the problem. Luffy was worried about something else, and Sabo believed that something was the cause of his brother's anxiety.

Sabo ran into the Captains' Cabin, where all three brothers slept, looking for his little brother. Noticing that Luffy's hammock—as well as his and Ace's next to it—were empty, he looked towards the corner opposite them where a giant pile of mismatched pillows and blankets lay on the floor. Seeing a blanket shift and hearing his little brother's sobs, Sabo quickly locked the cabin's door before dashing over to the sizeable nest.

He hoped that there was still time to prevent Luffy from having another panic attack. The blond brother had sensed the younger's growing anxiety and was trying to keep his brother's condition (mental and physical) from declining any further. In Luffy's current state, a panic attack could potentially send him over the edge and cause him to do something outrageously stupid.[M1]

Sabo carefully stepped into the nest Luffy often used as his bed (he still used the hammock as he liked sleeping up high, but mostly for naps or rough weather) and sat down next to his crying baby brother. Sabo gently transferred the raven-haired boy to his lap, with Luffy's side up against his chest, and wrapped his arms securely around his little brother. Sabo had to be careful of the maned, snake-like tail that had formed and wrapped tightly about his distraught brother's body and the pillow Luffy had stuffed his face into and was trying to squeeze to death.

The blond rocked and shushed Luffy, gently rubbing circles along the younger boy's back. Sabo quickly looked about the modest room for the treasured straw hat Luffy always wore. He doubted that it would be in the dragon's clothing chest—each brother had one and stacked them on top of one another to save space—and he didn't see it on the only desk in the room next the chests on the far wall either. A glance at the corner where the three hammocks hung also showed no sign of the hat. As Sabo looked back down at his brother, he noticed a bit of straw-gold sticking out from under a blanket on Luffy's other side. Gently, he leaned forward and grabbed the hat before placing it off to the side on the nest's edge; he tossed his own black top hat and goggles next to it. Task completed, Sabo went back to giving Luffy his full attention and calming the young teen down.

Thankfully, Luffy was no longer on the verge of having an anxiety attack. He was still crying but nowhere close to as much as when Sabo first entered the room. The little raven-head is now curled up around one of Ace's pillows with his face pressed into it as if it were a lifeline.

Luffy's black-scaled tail also remained firmly curled about him. Luckily for Sabo the three pairs of blades at the tip, by his stomach, were relaxed and folded in at the moment. The blond continued waiting for Luffy to calm down enough to speak.

Sabo redirected his attention to his baby brother as he felt the younger shift a little and take a few deep breaths. He had a feeling he already knew what'd upset Lu, catching snippets of emotions while outside and managing the crew.

"I still can't reach him, Sabo!" A shaky, quiet, desperate wail.

"It's not like the time I almost," Sabo paused and held Luffy tighter, "died? When we were little? Is it?" Using his own mental connection with Lu, Sabo tried to project a soothing feeling in an effort to help calm them both.

Truthfully, Sabo is concerned about his baby brother's physical condition and mental state. The dragon-child refused to leave the room the brothers shared ever since the late evening of the second day. Luffy is trying to keep himself calm (or at least calm _er_ ) and keep himself from losing control of his instincts by surrounding himself with Ace's scent.

But Sabo knew it couldn't continue. Not like this.

Ace's scent may be comforting to Luffy right now, but he'd felt Luffy's rage bubbling at the edges of his brother's mind. Sabo had allowed a closer joining of their consciousness to help alleviate some of Luffy's despair over their brother being taken from them the first night, and Sabo could feel how the constant reminder of Ace's absence was fanning that rage. The partial-Shift also complicated matters, as it brought Luffy's natural draconic essence more to the fore.

Dragons are very possessive over things they view as being theirs. Many stories spoke of their destructive rampages across land and sea in their attempts to reclaim whatever someone thought to steal from them. Tales of Drakkón were even worse.

Ace and Sabo have witnessed Luffy exhibit similar tendencies. Although there've been a few instances that left a lasting impression, none were to the same extent spoken of in the stories that Sabo read to them. (Heaven forbid their dragon ever fall to that level of rage when he gets older! The sight and prospect is scary enough with his _current_ power.)

Between Luffy's bouts of anxiety and despair, Sabo has been feeling snippets of that fiery rage through their link once the shock of Ace's capture had passed. Sabo knew Luffy was trying to keep that fire dampened by focusing on attempts to assess Ace's condition using their mind-link, but it's becoming obvious the dragon's struggles against his instincts were wearing thin. Sabo worried that if the rage grew and festered much longer then Luffy would lose control, attacking the ship holding their big brother as a furious black inferno. And what a shit storm that would create…

Luffy was getting skinnier, the stress killing his appetite. Even with the tiny tidbits Sabo was able to force down him at regular intervals the dragon's metabolism was simply too high. The younger's body burned through it too fast to be of any real use.

Looking at Luffy now, pale with dark bags under his eyes (his baby brother also hadn't managed to get any real sleep the last two days), made Sabo wince. He cursed the Whitebeards a hundred times over for what they were doing to his precious family.

It'd been a couple minutes since he'd asked his question and Sabo started a bit when the other next spoke.

"N-no…not like then," Luffy choked out, thready whimpers and keening mixed in with the tearful hiccups. Turning to cuddle closer and look at Sabo better, the younger cried, "Ace's there…I can feel him! But…but li-like Ace is really far away and someth-thing is covering him and he w-won't an- _answer_. S-sometimes A-Ace gets a b-bit closer but th-then goes away again! I k-keep calling and _calling_ but h-he doesn't _hear_!" He buried his face back into, now that Sabo is able to see it, Ace's favorite pillow. A big, fluffy thing with a yellow and orange cover that had little sparks decorating it.

Sabo curses his older sibling's abductors again as more tears fall from Luffy's puffy, red eyes. The deep, dark brown orbs that would normally shine with mirth and life have faded to dull, muddy pools. They were light enough to see the slit-pupils inside were blown wide with hurt, fear, anger and confusion. The dragon emitted a strangled keen into his fluffy anchor, the sound heartbreaking.

Ultimately, it was Luffy's worsening state that finalized Sabo's course of action. He'd been contemplating the option yesterday and the night before (and discussing it with their First Mate, Zack).

"Luffy, look at me." Teary brown rose to meet with burning blue. "I was talking with Zack a bit and we decided to try and get Ace back today."

Luffy blinked and slowly uncurled from his pillow-death-hug to sit up a bit straighter. The dragon gave Sabo his full attention. His tail unwound before shifting off to his side and laying in a loose curl. However, Luffy's inner agitation was betrayed by the rustling of scale and fin as his tail spines partially opened and closed randomly.

"Being the strongest after Ace on this ship, I thought it best if it were us who went onto the _Moby_ to rescue Ace. Leaving the crew here, out of harm's way. But," Sabo paused to really look at Luffy's body language. The older needed to make sure the black dragon didn't fly off—literally, he was probably big enough now—and fully understood what was being said. "You can only come with me if you maintain control of yourself."

Closing his eyes and taking a set of deep breaths, Lu sat there for a few moments. When they next opened and stared into his own blues, Sabo felt a sliver of relief finding the feral glint had abated some. The Drakkón fledgling nodded slowly.

"Good. Now, the usual. Promise that you won't Shift or reveal your other form unless I say or the old conditions apply."

"I promise I won't Shift or otherwise show my other form unless you say I can or I find that the old agreed upon conditions apply."

Sabo watched Luffy's tail twitch with impatience as his brother said this but knew the younger would do whatever he could to follow through on the promise. He and Ace learned from Luffy that Drakkón valued promises and honesty. Such agreements were viewed akin to binding contracts between those involved in the promise. Making a promise without the intent to do everything one could to see it completed is beyond shameful to their species and something they wouldn't ever consider acceptable. It's a belief ingrained into their nature, a trait which Ace and Sabo only occasionally abuse in their efforts to ensure their baby brother and his secret were kept safe.

"Great! Now that that's done with, let's start planning our grand entrance onto the _Moby Dick_ and get our Treasure back!"

* * *

Thatch groaned as he moved about his cabin, getting ready to head to the _Moby Dick_ 's kitchens to start preparing breakfast. Though not generally considered a morning person, Thatch was usually up and about in the early morning hours out of habit. He was the Fourth Division Commander of the Whitebeard pirates, but more importantly he was the ship's Head Chef.

He was only feeling a little slow today because of how late he had gone to sleep the previous night. Lately, Thatch had been bothered with something he'd noticed about their injured, soon-to-be little brother.

After the rather anti-climactic end to Ace's "fight" against Whitebeard, Marco was giving a brief check of Ace's wounds—which Thatch believed was done mostly to make sure the teen hadn't been accidentally killed—when the redhead noticed something on the kid's chest.

On the left side, right over Ace's heart, was a small tattoo that looked to be comprised of three images with what looked like characters etched across them. It was difficult to tell, exactly, what the design was because of the state the fire-user's body.

He hadn't gotten a very good look and couldn't really make out the characters in the tattoo (really, the kid had been a mess!), but something about it bugged him. Thatch felt as if he should recognize what the tattoo was and _knew_ he recognized it for some reason. He felt it was important enough that he should remember _why_ he remembered. This niggling feeling had been in the back of his head since the commander had first laid eyes on the marking and it had only grown over the past few days.

Being a chef, it was normal for him to venture into island markets and converse with a wide variety of people at the places they stopped at for supplies or when he was sent off on missions. Perhaps he'd heard something then about why that tattoo should be familiar?

"Gaaahhh… I'll just go visit Bay before heading to prepare breakfast and try to get another peak at it. Maybe that'll help," he mused.

Twenty minutes later—hey, it takes a while to look as good as he does! Plus, his rooms weren't exactly close to the infirmary—the chef strode through the infirmary door and stopped at the injured Ace's bedside.

Bay wasn't in at the moment. The nurse on duty informed him that she had stayed up late and had only gone to sleep about four or so hours ago. With the help of the nurse, who was about to change Ace's bandages again, Thatch managed to get another (clearer) view of the black tattoo on the teen's chest.

The area was still bruised with small cuts and abrasions marring the sight of the ink. However, the Fourth is able to make out a majority of the details. He'd been right in his earlier assumption of the tattoo having images with characters in front of them. Closer inspection revealed the characters to be three specially detailed letters.

The first was an 'A' and looked to be made of flame with a rising (or setting) sun behind it. The second was an 'S,' stylized to appear as if it were made of water and a series of what seem to be waves are inked as its background (which also extend to run under the sun and the third character). The last letter is an 'L' covered in some diamond-like pattern—the purple-black bruising on the teen's skin and the scrape overlaying the character blur most of the detail. The L's bottom portion curves into a mild arch then dips in a shallow curve before the end flicks up and back slightly. Thanks to the injuries being a little worse on this portion of Fire-Fist's tattoo, the letter's backdrop image is a bit harder to decipher than the previous two.

After asking the nurse for her opinion, who'd been impatiently waiting for the chef to move so she could continue changing her charge's bandages, they agreed it was probably a dark or cloudy sky with a single star shining in it. Hard to tell due the kid's chest, like the rest of him, being covered in a motley of bruises and cuts.

Standing back to let the nurse finish with the new dressings, Thatch's impression that he really did know something about that tattoo became stronger. That 'ASL' is jumping and waving, and for the absolute life of him (and his sanity, 'cuz this was getting to be very annoying) he. Didn't. Know. _WHY_!

A moment later, a large _thud_ sounded on the top deck and chaos erupted on the _Moby Dick_.

* * *

"Got the trajectory down?"

"I think so…"

"If you miss, we're both going swimming. And the Whitebeards—and our _wonderful_ crewmates here—will laugh their asses off at us. Remember that."

In the past hour, the Spade Pirates had managed to draw close enough to Whitebeard's ship to be able to use Luffy's Rocket maneuver to get the two brothers aboard the other vessel. No alarms sounded. No Whitebeard crewmembers stopped to watch them.

Sabo figured it was time. He grabbed his trusty pipe (his favored weapon choice ever since the brothers had been kids) and strapped it onto his back before finally giving their plan the 'all clear'.

Not that the "plan" is especially elaborate, seeing that Luffy would be involved. Mostly it called for Lu using his rubber powers to get both brothers over to the ship imprisoning Ace. Then Luffy, in typical Luffy-fashion, would unleash chaos and mayhem on-deck (but was told to keep his Devil Fruit ability kind of hidden to use it as a trump card later).

Meanwhile, Sabo would slink away to locate and rescue Ace. Once he found Ace, and deemed it necessary, Sabo would slip Ace some of Luffy's blood he'd collected in a little vial to give their brother a quick jumpstart. After getting their Treasure back, they'd again use Luffy's powers to get their asses out of the hornet's nest and back to their own ship (hopefully without any serious injuries).

The plan kind of rumbled to a stop once they reach the 'get back to the ship safely' part, as nobody really had any workable idea for how to escape from the giant hornet nest they were sure to stir up. Sabo also held a very big hunch that this wasn't how everything is going to go, seeing as it's two pissed brothers (and possibly a third if Ace is able to rally) against probably a hundred experienced and very strong Whitebeard Pirates. There was the additional possibility that the legendary Captain Whitebeard would choose to involve himself as well.

' _Yeah. No way is this plan doomed to fail or anything_ ,' Sabo thought with a smirk. Oh, well. That's why he'd told Zack and the others to stay behind with the ship and to wait for their hopeful, albeit unlikely, return.

The crew'd been against the idea, naturally, but in the end was forced to agree it made sense. Especially when _Luffy_ just stared at them, as if they were the biggest morons he'd ever seen, before deadpanning, "You're all idiots."

(Immediately after saying this, a wave hitting the boat caused Luffy to almost fall off the railing he'd been perched on and into the sea. Only Zack—standing next to Luffy at the time—with his quick reflexes saved Lu from another impromptu swim.)

Currently, the raven-haired teen has one hand wrapped around each of the _Wild Card_ 's two masts with his body positioned between them. His feet, braced against the outside of the rail with the ship's deck between him and his target, were the only thing keeping him from flying. The _Moby Dick_ was the unsuspecting target.

Sabo clung to Lu's back (careful of not squishing his brother's hat and his own tied in front next to it) as Luffy leaned back a little further over the ship's side attempting to stretch as far as he could.

The Spade Pirates were getting a good chuckle at how Sabo—standing a good head and a half taller than Luffy—is wrapped around his much smaller brother and looking like he's about to get a (relatively extreme in this case) piggyback ride. Wearing those blue goggles over his eyes, when normally they're adorning the blond's hat, is icing on the proverbial cake.

Some Spades were even taking pictures seeing as how, should this entire plan go south from the get-go, they'd at least be able to get some quality, funny photos to use against the teens later. Though, with Ace and Sabo's brother-complex towards Luffy, others were just thinking of selling the older siblings the photos for a bit of profit. (Unless Sabo McSneakyFingers found them first.)

Ignoring the sniggers and camera flashes of the crew, and not letting go of his hold on Luffy in case of a premature launch (which has happened many times before), Sabo cleared his throat to gain the Spades' attention.

"Men, in case we don't make it back or Luffy misses the giant ship in front of him and we crash into the sea—"

"I won't miss, dammit!"

"I would just like to say thank you for following me and Ace this far and for _attempting_ to keep me and my brothers out of trouble. It's been great sailing with you all and I hope we all return so that we may continue our voyage toge-DAMMIT LUFFYYY~!"

The Spade Pirates cracked up laughing, many clutching their sides and falling to the deck. Luffy's foot had slipped from where it was braced on the rail, causing the brothers' accidental launch.

They never got tired of seeing the faces Ace and Sabo make when such an event happens. One of the guys managed to gasp out that they had a picture of Sabo's face right as the boys launched.

It was agreed that copies would be made as soon as possible so that everyone had one. They also made a note to add the picture to the crew's scrapbook of the brothers' misadventures.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry not a whole lot happened. First time writing a fic so am still getting used to everything. Figured I should try to lay out most of the groundwork now so that I don't have to clutter up later chapters. Next chapter has action and fire and Luffy being Luffy. Tell me what you think of the fight scene(s) and what I could do to make it better. Never really written a fight scene before, so this will be a learning experience for everyone! If you have any questions you can either PM me or add it in the review and I will try to address them.**

 **(*) For the L's lower portion, think of the tilde sign (the wavy thing on the key to the left of the 1 on a keyboard) except that the very end is a tad more curved so it curls almost into a semi-circle.**

 **P.S. If you are upset over the Spade Pirates not really having names it is because I absolutely suck at naming crap and they aren't very important to the story (seriously, they'll only show up in the first few chapters, maybe the fourth). Looked for what Ace's crew names were but didn't find anything. Only named "Zack" because I couldn't just call the ship's first mate, First Mate. As to how he got his name… While spinning my computer chair around and around trying to think of something to call the guy, I got a call from my friend who lived across the street from me to complain about her brother, whose name is—you guessed it!—Zack. Turns out, Zack caused a HotPocket (nasty things) to explode in their microwave, causing a huge mess and the entire house to reek of nasty, cheesy, HotPocket grossness. She wanted to come over and chill at my place and watch movies while cleaned up the mess and aired out the house. And thus, Zack of the Spade Pirates got his name!**

 **P.S.S. Thinking of starting a drabble series related to the ASL brothers' scrapbook of misadventures. May find a way to link it to this story and have mentions appear every now and then between the two. If you want me to try this out or maybe have requests/ideas for what could feature in this, and maybe the main story too, please add that in your review (if you choose to leave one).**

 **Thanks for reading so far, see you all later!**


	3. Give Back Ace!

**A/N: And here we are again with a new installment of…what the hell did I name this story again? It's official, the title of this story is up for debate! If I can't even remember what this thing is called off the top of my head it means that the title sucks and should be changed (not surprising given my penchant for lack of creativity when it comes to names). Please post title ideas in your review (should you choose to leave one) and I will take my favorites and decide amongst them.**

 **And wow! Thanks for all the favs, follows (could you call those 'stalks' as in 'stalkers who follow the story wherever it goes'? Am tired is close to one as I write this so just ignore me!), and even reviews! Didn't think this story would hit it off so well…yeah, so big round of Thanks goes to all of you!**

 **Kinda same as last time (and the time before that), if you see any grammar/spelling mistakes, problems with tenses (have trouble keeping that straight), or have problems with any medical lingo (or any medical-based stuff) just PM me and don't feel shy about it. I feel that criticism leads to improvement or enlightenment towards how others view something. So, I love getting feedback, especially** ** _constructive_** **feedback, on my writing. If you have any questions or opinions about the story, put them in the review (including any criticism about the story if you choose not to PM).**

 **Shit this is accidentally got long…really need to work on rambling…ummm…What else am I missing? Oh well, if I can think of it I'll add it in at the end of the chappie. Onto the third chapter! Luffy unleashes chaos and mayhem, Sabo tries to sneak about, Ace wakes up (sorta), and the hornet's nest gets kicked (in more than one way)!**

 **Disclaimer: You recognize it and I didn't have a hand in creating it, then it is NOT MINE! So all rights to respective owners…and Disclaimer Brownies for all!**

 **UPDATE (11/15/16):** **Made some grammar/typo fixes. Cleaned up some sentences/scenes. Added a few tidbits here and there.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: Give Back Ace! Chaos on the Moby Dick**

* * *

Tenth Division Commander Curiel was currently on lookout duty with two other members of his division that morning. It was barely after six in the morning and the sky had only just started to lighten, the sun itself not due to rise for almost another hour. He'd been woken up only half an hour ago by the previous watch (he thinks they were from the third or fourth, but couldn't remember for certain) and deeply regretted staying up late to play poker with Fossa, Vista, and Rakuyo—more because of the money he lost than the lack of sleep. Curiel may not have be a morning person, but he did function better than most of the other commanders in the early hours, so he wasn't too tired.

Standing in the crow's nest of the tallest mast, the pirate leaned against the basket's half-wall and absently fingered the spyglass each of the lookouts had mounted against the mast. Humming an off-key tune with a yawn breaking in now and again, Curiel checked the roosts to either side of his station to make sure his division members were awake and doing their job. It wouldn't be the first time someone fell back asleep at this hour of the day, especially as there was nothing going on, and they were really only keeping watch for their sister-ship, the _Blue Moby One_.

They were transferring some of the crew between ships since _Moby One_ is a little short-handed and also picking up their fishman brother, Namur, who had been helping out with some of his division members for a while. They were supposed to meet up with the other ship earlier but once Pops heard about the fight between a fire-wielding Super Rookie and their honorary brother, Jinbei, the captain ordered a change in course. After absconding with the Spades' captain, they went back to the original plan of meeting up with the _Moby One_.

Double-checking both men were awake and alert (yelling at one who was about to nod off), he slowly circled around to the other side of the lookout room's balcony to check how things looked on that side of the ship.

Idly, Curiel wondered if that new brat's ship was still following them. The young captain's ship had been spotted in the distance off their stern the morning after Pops decided to keep the hotheaded punk. There had even been a few jokes going around the crew about how it was like taking in a stray dog (with Thatch providing a complimentary "Woof!" at the end when he told the story) after they were told of the youth's encounter with Whitebeard. Though after hearing about his reaction to Whitebeard, and the subsequent fallout, many were nervous about what state the kid—' _Isn't his name a card? Jack? No, no, it's Ace! Ace is his name._ '—would wake up. They _did_ kind of kidnap him after all…

Reaching the other side of the crow's nest, Curiel immediately took note of two things.

' _When did they get so close? Didn't the others see them before they came to wake us?'_ The smaller ship that had barely been in sight for the past several days is suddenly just a thousand or so feet off the starboard side. He put the spyglass up to his eye as he mused, ' _Must have used the cover of night to catch up, but why?_ '

Curiel only became more confused when he observed the activity of the crew. ' _The hell? What are those guys waving around? And why is that big one slumped over the rail and hanging off the side? Wait…why are those three rolling around on the deck?'_ You could almost _see_ the question mark floating above Curiel's watermelon-helmeted head. Then comes the next shocking revelation, ' _I don't see that blue one or the small kid Thatch and Marco mentioned… Aren't they part of this crew?'_

The Whitebeard Pirates only had some basic information on the Spade crew, as Pops had expressed interest in the captain when he first heard of the Super Rookie. However, he was pretty sure that there was something about the blue-clad crewmember mentioned somewhere in the report Marco and a couple of the other Division Commanders had compiled. Didn't it say that Fire-Fist and the blue teen were always seen close together?

Now that he really thought about it—' _Seriously,_ what _is that crew doing? More have joined that big one in hanging over the side, one appears to be steering the ship away, and the rest…are face-down on the deck… Huh?_ '—isn't Blue a Super Rookie too? Despite what little they knew about Blue (he honestly can't remember the kid's name), Curiel had expected to see him amongst the other pirates on-deck. He didn't know why, but he felt it weird that particular person wasn't in sight.

It's at this exact moment the Division Commander heard something falling, fast, and suddenly sensed a presence _above_ the _Moby Dick_ which made him look up. What happened next would, in Curiel's humble opinion, take _any_ of his fellow commanders a little off guard and make them go still in shock. After all, it wasn't every day that a person fell from the sky.

* * *

"—DAMMIT LUFFYYY~!"

Okay, so maybe not the best way to start off their (Sabo's) plan of rescuing Ace. It wasn't like it was _completely_ his fault that his foot slipped and caused him to accidentally rocket Sabo and him away before his brother was ready.

' _Sabo talks too much sometimes anyway…_ '

Luffy had been getting a little impatient and uncomfortable with holding his position as he waited for Sabo to finish addressing the crew. He'd shifted his sandaled foot to help relieve some of the ache that had started to develop from the strain his body was under. The sandal's sole hit a tiny patch of damp wood and… Launch.

' _Not like I_ meant _to slip, but at least we are finally off to get Ace!_ ' Luffy couldn't help the smile that stretched across his face.

He's so _excited_ at finally getting to take action against those damn pirates for stealing his beloved brother. _His_ Treasure! The blood in his veins is nearly _burning_ with the dragon's desire to wreak havoc upon his intended targets. It sang to his anger, body tingling in want to Change into his larger and more powerful shape.

Sabo sensed Luffy's rising bloodlust and felt the body under him responding to it, trying to unconsciously Shift itself. /( _Calm Relax_ ) Stop Lu. You promised, remember? Don't directly engage anyone, they're too strong. You're only to distract them so I can get to Ace./ Luffy gave a slight jolt under him before calming down and apologizing.

No longer distracted by his little brother, Sabo finally realized something he really should've taken notice of earlier: they were not headed directly for the other ship.

Instead of the planned launch where Luffy would rocket them at the other ship's sails (thereby getting a decently padded and quiet "landing"), they're now at a steep incline. On their current trajectory, they would hit the flight's apex high above and a little off the _Moby_ _Dick_ before falling and crashing into the ship's deck.

Luffy saw this particular missed detail just as the two reached the zenith of their flight and started their downward journey.

 **/ Hold on Sabo!/**

/( _WorryfearResignation_ ) To what!? I'm already holding onto you!/

Watching the deck rush up to meet them, Luffy quickly wrapped one rubber arm around his brother as he inflated himself to absorb the impact and provide a cushion to soften his passenger's landing. To make sure he didn't accidentally bounce _off_ the ship after they landed, he did a partial-Shift of his other hand and feet so they now bore talons to grab hold of the wood planks and anchor them.

Then time was up.

Luffy and Sabo's falling bodies collided with the giant ship's wood deck with bone-jarring force; though Sabo _had_ been cushioned by Luffy's inflated rubber body (and quick thinking), he still felt some of the shock from the impact. The ship itself shuddered a little from the forceful, loud crash.

Digging into the wood, a few planks splintering from their landing despite being made of Adam's Wood, Luffy prevented his body from bouncing and immediately deflated while letting go of his brother. In the pre-dawn light, he could see Sabo rushing off towards some barrels sitting by a door that, hopefully, would let him below-deck and to their missing brother.

Luffy and Sabo were finally close enough to Ace that they didn't have to fight to sense their brother's presence. The blond could easily sense the distance and direction of the kidnapped captain, and Luffy is able to better feel the older's (unresponsive) mind through their link. The brothers' mental bonds were no longer hampered by the strain of distance.

Undoing the minor alterations of his hand and feet, Luffy followed after Sabo; shadowing him so that they looked like one person to those he sensed above in the crow's nests. The plan did call for Sabo to remain unseen and unaccounted for as long as possible after all. They reached the barrels at the same time that shouts from above began the cry of "Intruder! Intruder on the ship!"

Hearing thundering footsteps approaching from the nearby door, Luffy grinned and turned to face his brother. **/ Seems this does lead below. Hear some coming, good luck! Get Ace!/**

/( _Worry_ ) Remember, you are NOT to fight them. Just keep them busy. Don't be obvious about your abilities either, you might need a trump card. ( _Adamant_ ) And for the love of all that is holy DO NOT get scaly!/

 **/( _Irritated_ ) I know! Get ready, they're here./** Luffy dropped the scowl on his face and replaced it with a carefree, somewhat mischievous, smile.

Then, keeping track of the footsteps he could hear rushing towards the door beside them, he calmly got up and walked over to stand in front of it. Once those on the other side sounded close enough, Luffy opened the door and looked down (with a smile still plastered on his face) at the _very_ confused looks being directed up at him from the bottom of the short stairway.

"Shishishishi! Oops! Wrong door, bye!"

Closing the door on the pirates' stunned faces, Luffy turned and ran in the opposite direction with a true grin now adorning his face. This quickly changed to a small laugh as the door, now several yards behind him, burst open with the sounds of swearing and shouting coming from the pirates who immediately started chasing the straw-hatted boy.

Seeing that the target wasn't some big burly intruder intent on taking their Pops' head, the amassing pirates chasing the black-haired youth stowed their more lethal weapon choice; the collective's goal now leaning more in favor of subduing and catching, versus maiming and killing, their quarry. Luffy frowned a bit at this but gave a mental shrug and chalked it up to the Humans being tired and not thinking clearly or were very confident they'd catch him. Whatever, ultimately it meant the dragon got more breathing room to try and contact Ace while Sabo was busy searching. If they didn't intend to kill him, it just meant he would have an easier time of things on his end (he still had to pay attention to keep from getting caught and to avoid the sharper/pointier weapons being wielded).

The pirates chasing him were getting to be very loud now, many cursing him for interrupting their sleep or for being a pain in the ass and not letting them nab him. For being pirates, none of their threats or curses were particularly creative…maybe they weren't morning people or needed that nasty brown stuff Sabo and Zack liked to drink in the morning. Luffy chose to tune their cries out to keep from getting too distracted and to better concentrate on doing his job: not getting caught!

To gain speed and put some distance between him and his increasing number of pursuers, Luffy used his rubber abilities to get more bounce in his steps. Sabo had gotten him a small rubber ball once (his first time seeing a rubber bouncy-ball) and while Luffy had loved playing with it, he'd wondered about how it could bounce so far and fast with just a little toss. After listening to Sabo explain how some of the properties of rubber allowed the toy to do this, he'd made an active effort of trying to incorporate the same thing into his techniques. This proved useful as, when used in moderation, it allowed him to use his powers in a covert manner for when he was trying to hide his Devil Fruit abilities.

Now, he used his previous training to make the balls of his feet act in a similar to his old toy, allowing him to speed up his movements and make more unpredictable and split-second directional changes. Using the new (albeit temporary) breathing room, Luffy concentrated on feeling for Ace and trying to get his brother to respond to him. Honestly, it still worried him that even though they were almost on top of elder raven, Ace continued to feel rather fuzzy to his mental probing.

 **/( _WorryLongingdesperateHopeful_ ) Ace! Ace answer. We're here, me and Sabo came! Ace!/ **Luffy continued to repeatedly call out mentally to his brother, even as he was kept busy jumping about by those chasing him.

Looking around, he saw that the Whitebeard Pirates were trying to surround and corral him. ' _No. Not gonna happen. Hehehe, let's see what they do with this…_ '

With another quick glance, Luffy determined a 'fun' route to take to a more open space. Making another bound forward, when his foot touched the wood planks he tilted it to push his body to his immediate right. A really tall dude with a funny dark and big mustache, who had been right behind him and ready to grab Luffy, ran into the short person with a funny green ruffled shirt that had jumped in front in preparation to grab Luffy (had he kept going forward). He giggled when he saw them collide, the smaller one swearing bodily harm upon the larger for trying to run him over.

A swift strike to unguarded stomachs downed a group trying to close-in on him opened a new avenue that he darted down. It was probably due to the odd hour of the day that everyone's reaction times were so slow (Luffy honestly expected these Whitebeard Pirates Sabo had called "dangerous" to be more of a challenge to outrun); he had at least fifty of the 'enemy' pirates around him (not going to stop and count) currently and he could sense more coming join the horde.

' _With the noise everyone is making the whole ship will likely be after me soon!_ ' Although that would make Sabo's task easier, the negative side was that Luffy's would become more difficult.

Paying more attention to his surroundings, he noticed a wall coming up in front. A look behind revealed that some of the pirates had gotten close and were ready to pounce on him, evidently believing him trapped. Mulling over an idea for a second, Luffy decided to clearly state his intentions in regard to being on the ship in the first place.

Continuing forward, he jumped up and planted both feet squarely the wall. Twisting about, he sprung back at one who'd been close behind him while shouting, "Give back Ace! He isn't yours!" **/( _Mine!Mine! Worryfearhope Where?_ ) ACE! Answer! We're here! Ace!/**

The pirate he was aimed for stilled at these words, leaving himself wide open. Luffy crossed his arms in front to brace himself before nailing the guy in the chest…hard. As the poor guy flew into a gaggle of his fellows, Luffy pushed off him to deliver a strong kick to another's stomach (sending him flying into another group) and followed that with a right and left hook to an approaching duo's temples.

With a small cleared space, he resumed his agile and abrupt darts through the mass of pirates, making sure to keep his rapid stops, twists, and jumps unpredictable. (He'd noticed some of these guys had a knack of being right where he was planning to go, causing Luffy to make very sudden, jerky dodges to miss their grasping hands.)

' _Probably_ kisú _. Will have to watch out for that._ '

Seeing someone trying to snatch one of his arms, he bolted through the legs of a guy with a dark mustache that angled sharply down into two different points and dirty-blond dreads held back by a yellow band. The bandana-wearer ended up tripping as Luffy swerved mid-way in his pass under the Human to miss the…chain-ball trying to _bite him_? Really? Can weapons _do_ that?

Lu just shook his head, making a few more rapid leaps while shouting, "Ace! ACE! Aaaaaaaacccce!"

Touching down briefly in his new location right in front of a lady in long, flowy clothing that looked like a robe—' _Wait… Why does "she" smell like a "he"?'_ —he crouched and made another leap forward between some sword-wielding people shouting at him to "Stand still, damn it!" just before they bowled over Lady-Man. A quick left, back, forward, right, back, left, forward then right-ward series of bounce-steps (many going through various pirates' legs) landed him near the edge of the growing mob.

Unfortunately, his new position is also right next to this new _huge_ dude—he's met several big Humans but this guy is _big_ —with a funny three-point black beard and equally funny black hair that's shaped into a bunch of small balls on his head. Ball-Hair Guy seemed very surprised to suddenly see Luffy standing next to him, which the little raven head took complete advantage of. Luffy sprang up onto the vastly bigger dude's shoulders, snickering at the even more shocked face of the older brunet (and those around him).

"Hey, where is Ace? I'm looking for him! He's coming back with us!"

It might've sounded light and joking were it not for the slight growl in the dragon's voice or the accusing glare Luffy directed at the Human. Seeing people once again try and close in on his position, and the big Human finally moving to grab him, the little raven-hair proceeded to use Ball-Hair Guy as a springboard to get closer to the giant mast. "You make a good launch-pad, Ball Hair!"

"I'm NOT bald!"

Luffy subjected several others to the treatment of being springboards, knocking the weaker ones out after landing on their face or with a quick punch to the head as he leaped away again. Sadly, the young dragon noted that some of his victims were only dazed and were soon after him again. This tactic was abandoned—temporarily; he might try after a different attempt to thin the crowd—when Luffy barely managed to dodge being grabbed by yet a second really big guy (this one had a bushy mustache and was smoking something that smelled nasty).

 **/( _WorryAnxious Hope?_ ) Ne, Sabo, you find Ace yet? He isn't answering me. And lots of these guys are BIG! And there are a lot of mustaches…/**

/( _Concern Anxious_ ) No, haven't found him yet. Close though! You okay?/

Skirting another grab and swinging between several pirates using their arms like branches— _'It's like being back on one of those islands growing up!'_ —Luffy kept up his approach to the tall mast. **/( _Tired_ ) Am starting to tire a little. Still can go for a bit though, don't worry. ( _FineGood Notworry_ ) Not easy to catch! Lots of practice!/**

He was seriously beginning to get a bit tired, all the running, dodging, and having little rest or appetite the past few days was wearing on him. Right now, Luffy felt as if he was running purely on the excitement rampaging through his veins and the need to really screw with the Whitebeard _Bastards_ who hurt and stole Ace from him and Sabo.

Reaching the mast, Luffy immediately began to scale the beam like a monkey. Hopefully, he could get a bit of a breather from his pursuers while also thinning out the crowd some. Not everyone would be able to climb this thing _that_ quickly, right? And it would leave less people on the ground, which he could swiftly get back to if needed, and he'd have more room to run about without fear of being penned in too quickly.

Luffy sensed the three presences from when Sabo and he had first arrived were still up in the ship's crow's nests and they hadn't moved to join their fellow crewmates in the surprise "catch that strawhat kid!" game. Therefore, he judged it safe enough to give a go at darting around in the ship's huge expanse of sail rigging. It looked fun and, since nobody was shooting at him and they couldn't really wave a sword at him if they were busy climbing, he might have a better chance at knocking some people out or getting them caught in the ropes of there too.

 **/( _Fear WorryConcern Confusion_ ) Ace, please! What's wrong? ACE!/**

* * *

Marco. Is. Pissed.

Very tired and wanting of a few more hours of blissful sleep—but still pissed.

Why is it that, as soon as he gets a few wonderful (and well-deserved in his opinion) hours of shut-eye, all hell has to break loose on the damned ship? Does the world really hate him that much?

' _It's too early for this crap yoi_ ,' he mentally griped, ascending the ladder-like stairs nearest his living quarters to the main deck of the _Moby Dick_. The chaos that greeted him upon opening the door only served to confirm this opinion.

A beautiful sun was rising above the distant horizon, bathing the _Moby Dick_ in a soft golden glow. The pristine sea glittered in the early light. Calm, gentle azure waves lapping against the hull…

Couldn't be heard above the riotous cacophony of sound that is blaring across the entire deck.

One of Marco's eyes twitched as he took in the scene before him. Several of his brothers lay scattered haphazardly on the ground, either unconscious or moaning in pain and clutching various body parts. Some were leaning on each other or kneeling/sitting on the deck, out of breath and panting. Around the mainmast stood the majority of those currently top-side. That area is also the origin of the ruckus echoing ship-wide and giving the Phoenix-zoan the beginnings of a headache.

Those surrounding the base of the mast (he could count at least three divisions present plus the odd commander or two) were waving raised weapons, fists, or combination of the two and hollering at something in the air—an image of dogs barking at a squirrel in a tree flashed over the real scene. There were more bellows of curses and threats coming from the rigging above too.

"Get your scrawny ass back here!"

"Damn monkey! Get down!"

"Shitty brat! Untie me _damn it_!"

"—broke my nose you little punk!"

"Capture the straw-hatted brat!"

Raising blue eyes filled with irritation to see what the hell had everyone riled up, a thin eyebrow almost disappeared under his blond fringe. ' _What the… Isn't that the brat who was with Fire-Fist several days ago? How did he get on the ship?'_

The young boy (he didn't look to be older than twelve or thirteen) is jumping and swinging around the yards and rigging like an honest-to-god _monkey_. The boy is also somehow managing to evade the pirates who'd followed him up there while landing quite a few hits on his pursuers; even entangling a fair number of them in the ropes. A feral grin is plastered on the shrimp's face the entire time. The sight of it unwillingly sent a tiny shiver down Marco's spine.

Using Observation Haki the First found Vista and Haruta standing towards the edge of the howling crowd and made his way over to them. Hopefully they could enlighten him as to what is going on (besides the fact that there's a child running rampant and creating chaos onboard).

His brows arched a fraction upon seeing said brothers.

Haruta, with a bruise on his left cheek and holding the same side's arm, is standing a little hunched over and alternating between shooting glares at Vista and watching the chase going on overhead. Vista looked a little roughed up, sporting a growing bruise on the right cheek, and is meeting the younger commander's glares with apologetic looks of his own.

"Someone please tell me what in the hell is _going on_ here, yoi?"

"Marco!" both turned and shouted with relief.

Haruta continued, "Thank the heavens you're here! _Help us!_ "

"Again, _what_ is going on here?"

Haruta pointed up, likely at the straw-hatted boy, deadpanning, " _That_ happened."

Vista gestured to the crow's nest on the mainmast. "Curiel had the early watch. Started shouting about an intruder onboard about…twenty minutes ago now, I think."

"We were rushing up to see who the intruder was when the door opened and we saw _him_ standing in it. Brat just _smiled_ and went 'Sorry, wrong door' then shut it in our faces!" The phoenix can't help wondering what the brat did to the Twelfth Commander to deserve such a derisive tone. Had to have been more than just the door being shut on him.

Then Marco caught onto something more important revealed by his brothers' account.

"You mean it's been twenty minutes and you _still_ haven't caught the kid, yoi? With _three_ divisions and _five commanders_?"

"Not like we can really go all-out and be done with the brat. We don't wanna accidentally cause a serious injury catching the stupid little bugger." Judging by Haruta's tone, though, the first mate knows the redhead's seriously reconsidering it.

Vista shrugged. "Little kid's quick. Changes direction on a beri and flexible enough to twist away from anyone trying to nab him." The swordsman pointed at his darkening cheek, "Strong for his size, too. Got me with a good left-hook. Then shimmied his monkey-butt back up the mast and into the rigging again."

"Again?" The two commanders nodded. Marco sighed and asked Haruta, "He do that to you, too?"

Turning a glare on Vista, Haruta huffed, " _No_. This sword-wielding idiot ran me over!"

"I said I'm sorry! I was _trying_ to catch the kid. Besides, little runt was causing almost everyone to run into each other. I got knocked over a few times, too, you know!"

"Oh! By the way, Marco, how does that Strawhat Brat know our new brother-to-be?"

"Why, yoi?"

"WHAT DID YOU BASTARDS DO WITH ACE!?"

"He's been shouting that and asking the ones he attacks non-stop," Vista dryly responded, returning his attention to the wild youth above them.

"Kid's part of Ace's crew yoi. Was there watching the hothead's fight with Jinbei." Haruta stared at Marco.

"Um, isn't he kinda _young_ to be sailing with _pirates_?"

"IF YOU JERKS ATE ACE I'LL SINK THE DAMN SHIP AND YOU DAMN BASTARDS WITH IT!"

This statement made all the present Whitebeards pause for a second and sweatdrop as they stared at the loud, dark-haired boy.

' _Does he seriously think we_ ate _his captain?'_ In a mix of disbelief and exasperation, the blond palmed his face and silently bemoaned the fate of his hope for a 'peaceful' morning. Sliding the hand down to cover only the lower portion of his face a few moments later, light blues opened to grudgingly look back up at the cause of his rapidly forming headache. Preparing to ask the kid a couple questions, and hopefully end this fiasco before it could escalate further, the First Division Commander pauses for a second time in as many minutes. Keen eyes register a dramatic change has occurred in the Strawhat Runt's expression.

The boy's feral and wild grin from earlier had faded. Not gone completely, he could make out the shadows of anger and desire for violence in the brat's features, except… A bright smile now stretched (almost impossibly wide) across Strawhat's young face, almost blotting out the negativity still very much present. "Ace!"

Then an explosion below-deck shook the ship.

* * *

 _It_ was closer now.

Didn't know why or how, but he could sense _It_ more clearly than before.

He fought against the darkness clinging to him, rejecting it viciously as he tries to claw towards that _important thing that is no longer missing_ and is floating just out of reach again.

Leaving the confines of the shadows meant feeling pain again— _hurts hurts hurts and please no more!_ —but that thing which had been _missing_ and _wrong_ in its absence is back! He could feel that _precious important_ light getting closer.

More and more pain crashed down around him but that wasn't important anymore because he could hear _It_ calling for him so he kept fighting.

Drawing closer to that _important something_ he starts seeing images— _black scales, bright smiles, blue eyes filled with acceptance, black orbs that become gold and shine with love, a sun over calm seas with a star in the dark sky_ —as something echoed out from the light.

No, that's a voice. That is a _someone_ …two someones! He could hear them calling for him!

 **/( _Anger TiredWorryConfused Mad_ ) Ace! ACE! Answer! Where? Okay!? Why not answer!? ACE!/**

/( _WorriedAnxious Hurry!_ ) Answer Ace! We're here, we've come to get you! Ace?!/

Finally touching the light, Ace felt himself be bathed in a gentle, pulsing warmth. He felt his brothers' worry and anxiety, their desperation and hope in getting to him, their desire and determination to never be forced apart ever again.

And the trouble they were both in.

/( _Long halls… Hiding—muststayhidden! So many in the way but can't get caught, won't be caught… Closerclosercloser, but where? Taking too long… Must hurry! Where?_ )/

 **/( _Up high… Surrounded… Not caught yet, gogogo! Mustn't get caught! Too many too many... So tired—Can't stop!_ )/**

Anger and rage built in him. His brothers were in trouble! He needed to get to them, needed to help them, _needs to protect them!_

/Lu! Sabo! I'm coming!/

* * *

Thatch had decided to leave whatever was currently happening on-deck to the divisions responsible for watch and dealing with enemy attacks this week. So while chaos reigned above, he was staying in the relatively empty infirmary—it was only him, a few nurses, and the sleeping Ace there—chatting with one of the nurses, Zoey (who was, for the most part, ignoring him), and keeping an eye on their almost comatose potential brother.

"Okay, seriously, what are those guys _doing_?" Zoey, a petite brunette, pauses in her folding of spare blankets to glance curiously at the pompadour-haired man.

"Excuse me?" Thatch moves his gaze to the puzzled young nurse. A small frown sits on his face.

"It's been about fifteen minutes," he points up at the ceiling, shouts and multiple pairs of feet can be heard thundering back and forth overhead from the main deck, "and _that_ is still going on."

The nurse looks at him, glances up, and then looks back at him. She gives the Fourth Commander a dismissive hum and goes back to folding the blankets, replying with a casual, "So?"

"Hmph. 'So' she says…" The unimpressed look his sister fires him causes the larger sibling to turn and instead face the recovering teen. Sulking at his audience's clear lack of interest, Thatch continues moodily, "Just is weird. How long does it take to deal with a small intrusion or attack? Especially since _at_ _least_ a few commanders are involved."

A small movement refocuses his attention on the bed before him. Scrutinizing the sleeping Ace, Thatch is about to chalk it up to his imagination when he sees the hand closest to him twitch. A quiet groan has hazel eyes travelling to the teen's freckled face. A furrowed brow and scrunched (though still closed) eyes greet him.

Thatch is about to call for a nurse—Zoey is no longer behind him folding blankets—when Ace's heart monitor picks up, rapid bleeps signifying the fire-user's heart to be almost racing. Seconds later, said patient is now panting and tossing about on the bed and the only thing the poor commander can think of is to call for help while holding the thrashing teen down.

"What is going on in here?!"

' _Oh thank god, Bay's here!_ ' Thatch is then roughly shoved aside by the smaller (and "scary") woman. Both pirates are now occupied with restraining the flailing limbs, simultaneously trying to avoid aggravating the more serious wounds.

Checking over the struggling Ace and seeing that her ship-sibling has prevented the kid from injuring himself further, mostly, Bay demanded again, "Thatch, what happened?"

"How should I know!? One second, I'm complaining about how long it's taking everyone to deal with a small attack. The next, _this guy_ starts to go crazy!"

Of course, it's right after Thatch finishes this statement that their hopefully-going-to-be-new-brother calms down. Both pirates exchange wary glances over the suddenly still patient, grips lessening slightly.

The Fourth Commander looks at Fire-Fist nervously, murmuring, "Something's not right…"

Though Ace is now very quiet and still, there's a new tenseness spreading throughout the younger's body. It puts the commander on edge. Then he registers another new change in the bed-ridden patient.

Ace is starting to grow warm— _hot!_ —under his hands.

It's sheer gut-instinct that has Thatch grabbing Bay and trying to put distance between them and the prone captain. They only make it a couple hasty feet before Ace's body explodes in a wave of fire and heat. The force of the blast knocks the two to the ground.

' _That's gonna leave a mark…_ ' Thatch could already feel the burns maturing on his body. Granted, the initial blast of hot air had, thankfully, knocked the two pirates back and to the ground before the wave of fire could seriously injure them. Still, though the burns weren't bad (probably mostly second-degree caused by the extreme heat), he is definitely dazed from the unexpected attack.

Looking over at his sister, Thatch noticed Bay hadn't fared much better than him. In fact, he was willing to bet that she was a tad worse off. Her skin looked sunburnt, there was a large bump on her head and the foggy look in her eyes hinted at a possible concussion.

Forcing the dizziness he was feeling back, the red-headed commander took stock of what he could see of the rest of the room from the floor…or, what was left of it at least.

' _Damn, it looks like a bomb went off in here…_ '

Beds were knocked over and either on fire or severely scorched. The other nurses present had dived for cover behind beds or a wall and, from the grumblings he could hear over the ringing in his ears, Thatch felt that they were largely unscathed. While the fire and heat from Ace's little explosion trick looked like it had left a mark on nearly everything in the room, it was the epicenter (that he and Bay were right next to) that was definitely the hardest hit.

Ace's bed was nothing more than a burning, twisted and melted mass now; the machines that had been hooked up to him hadn't faired any better either, looking like semi-melted and warped monstrosities. The ceiling over where the kid had been laying was little more than charcoal (and still on fire in spots). The floor was even worse off for it was still ablaze, and the fire didn't look to be calming down.

' _No way… Bay said he shouldn't be up right now!_ '

Through the fire, Thatch could see what he assumed to be Ace standing and stumblingly making his way to the door that led out of the infirmary. Attempting to stand himself, the commander held back a hiss as the movement aggravated his burns; he needed to stop Ace before the kid hurt himself!

A second look at the hothead showed that he's extremely unsteady on his feet and is hunched over, right arm holding his midsection with the hand grabbing his left side. Ace is also, to Thatch's dismay, still very much on fire. It wrapped around Ace like a flaming cloak with tendrils reaching out into the air and along the floor around him. How is Thatch supposed to stop the teen without touching him and getting burnt to a crisp?

Making a snap-decision, Thatch hauled his toasted butt in front of the young captain, splaying his arms and hands out in a show of non-aggression and also to try and block the guy's path.

"Calm down buddy! Nobody here is out to hurt you, promise. Let's just turn down the fire-works and talk things over—Shit!"

Leaping to the side, Thatch was able to barely avoid being roasted a second time. A blast of fire had been directed at him by the teen who, now that he was closer and could make out details, appears to be barely conscious.

Ace made it through the infirmary door, flames swamping the portal almost immediately after the teen cleared the threshold. Until they got the fire under control, Thatch, Bay and the rest of those still in the room were stuck there.

* * *

Sabo had hidden his presence during the flight over to the enemy ship. With Luffy acting as a beacon and playing the part of the chaotic distraction, Sabo could infiltrate the ship and seek out Ace undetected. Unless one of the more skilled people actively searched for another intruder's presence—Sabo held no doubt the game would be up if they did; he isn't one to be overconfident in their abilities and these _are_ legendary, veteran pirates they're up against—he should remain 'invisible'.

It was taking longer than Sabo would have liked to reach their captive older brother; he had to keep ducking behind doors, into shadows, and around corners to avoid being spotted. Luffy's flaring of his presence may be helping to keep Sabo's own suppressed one harder to make out but it wouldn't matter if someone saw him before he got to Ace.

Luckily, the decreased distance separating the brothers meant even Sabo had an easier time of mentally locating Ace and could call out to him. He may not be as loud as Lu, but he could still reach out emotionally just fine.

When their brother _finally_ responded to their calls, Sabo felt nothing but relief and joy that Ace was able to connect with him (Luffy's mirroring sentiments were a pleasant hum in the back of his mind).

Then Ace did something stupid. It had to be him. Sabo didn't think anyone from Whitebeard's crew would purposely cause an _explosion_ of all things below-deck on their own damn ship. So that left the two's hotheaded, idiot brother.

 **/( _Worry Happy Tired_ ) Ace unhappy. You are close! Hurry!/ **Sabo rolled his eyes as he hid behind another door.

/I know, Lu. Just give me a few more minutes.  ( _Worry_ ) How are you holding up?/ Checking that the coast was clear, he continued down the hallway. ' _It's annoying how similar all these corridors are. If I couldn't sense Ace I would've been lost ages ago…_ '

 **/( _Anxious TiredExhausted Angry Tear!Bite!Claw!_ )/**

Turning another corner, Sabo was met with small waves of heat and could smell charred wood. He fingered the small vial of blood though the material of his dark-blue tailed-coat; the vial stashed in a special breast pocket he had sewed onto the inside of the coat. All his coats possessed a hidden pocket courtesy of his cautious nature and need to plan ahead.

/( _Calm Calm_ ) You are doing good, Luffy. I can feel Ace's flames so we'll be up to join you very soon. Don't get caught! And don't show off your abilities. Doing good! Almost done./

 **/( _Tired Pleased_ )/**

Not seeing anyone else around and knowing his brother is _finally_ within reach, Sabo threw his usual caution to the wind and raced down the last bit of the corridor he was in. Rounding the corner, he stopped short at the sight that met him and had to quickly leash his emotions (lest Luffy pick up on them and act out). With Lu's current hold on his instincts fraying by the minute, and the dragon's monitoring of his brothers' psyche, it's a very possible outcome that Sabo _really_ wants to avoid.

Ace is slumped over and slowly walking—stumbling—towards him. One arm's bent and braced against the wall, taking most of his weight and helping him along, the other curled around his stomach. Uncomprehending grey eyes are glazed and dull as they flicker about with an air of desperate yearning. Forget being even _mildly_ _aware_ of their surroundings, Sabo's big brother seemed barely damn _conscious_ as he struggled with moving his feet and just staying upright. Ace's condition appeared more likeable to a sleepwalker who fell down several flights of stairs and continued to keep going!

Flames danced and surged around Ace; fiery tendrils of varied widths and lengths combing his immediate area—Sabo offhandedly noted that this was a technique Ace had been working on with Luffy over the past couple of weeks—with some flaring out to wrap around the freckled teen's injured form protectively. Smoke rose from the wall Ace used to brace himself as the heat of his body and his wild fire ate at it. Looking behind his brother, Sabo saw that the hallway is littered with scorch marks with a few side halls or sections of wall and floor completely blanketed in flames. The blond figured Ace's fire either sensed opposition/threat at those points or the older teen had fallen/rested there.

A sudden stumble and hiss from Ace snapped Sabo back to the situation at hand and he rushed over to his brother's side. Sensing his rapid approach, the flames lunge at him with every intent of roasting their target. Raging heat waned to stiflingly warm when the inferno came within a foot of the gentleman-like blond; the blazing wave washing harmlessly over Sabo's body before it doubled-back and spun around him. The middle sibling never paused in his movements, completely disregarding the fire's actions from start to finish, and thankfully reached Ace in time to prevent the older from face-planting into the wood (again). Flames spread their protective embrace over Sabo's body, curling about his form as it did Ace's, feeling pleasantly warm and reassuring to him. Searing, painful and destructive to anyone else; Luffy being the only other exception to their might.

Sabo grit his teeth as he closely inspected his brother. Most of the injuries he could see were expected considering his fight with Jinbei. What's new, and kindled a spark of fury at Whitebeard and his crew within the blond, is the head wound Ace possesses. The way the elder raven was done up, he could pass a contest for 'Best Mummy Imitation'. A _flaming_ mummy, at that. His poor brother also looked to be on the verge of passing out.

Ace stiffened in Sabo's arms, probably only just realizing that someone is holding onto him. A breathy growl, strained from pain but still sounding of the other's usual stubbornness, slipped into the air. Sabo grunted as the freckled teen tried to escape his arms. The fire coating Ace flared and swam, obviously fighting against its Master's orders to injure him (instead causing further damage to the hallway), which only upset the Fruit-user more and the weakened attacks against Sabo's person increased in their frequency. Desperation, fear, anger (bordering on rage) and pain (mental and physical) radiated in increasing intensity from his brother by the second and Sabo, doing his best to fend off the physical blows without dropping Ace, began fearing for Lu's own mental state.

 _'Dammit! Stubborn ass!'_

The gentlemanly blond (lightly) smacked Ace on the side of the head opposite from the other's (very-likely) concussion-causing wound. He grimaced when the fire-user cringed and hissed, body slumping limply against him. The agitatedly swirling fire flashed with a brief swell of heat and a tiny tongue singed one of Sabo's coat sleeves in rebuke.

Rolling his eyes, Sabo gently resituated his hold of Ace. It's not like he _wanted_ to do it—a partial-lie actually, the piece of him that's very pissed at Ace for getting them into this huge mess in the first place is feeling a modicum better…but only by a tiny bit. The full force of Sabo's retribution will have to wait until they're back on the _Wild Card_ and the flaming idiot can somewhat dodge the blond's attacks (it wouldn't be as fulfilling if Ace can't run from him)—and he couldn't risk Luffy getting riled by Ace's rampant emotions. They were on thin enough ice as it was over that. The only way he could, effectively and efficiently, prevent escalating their dubious situation was to stun the older teen.

Nevertheless, he pacified the moody fire with a tiredly muttered, "Sorry."

Groaning called his attention to the face pressed against his collar, its features tight with suffering. With great care, Sabo softly ran his fingers through his sibling's hair in the hope his cooler touch might relieve some of the ache. While doing so, he mused, _'If Ace ever asks, I'll tell him he stumbled face-first into a wall then into the floor._ ' (Considering the state of the path Ace took, Sabo's willing to bet it had to have happened at least once anyway.)

Cradling Ace, Sabo carefully maneuvered his brother closer to the (charred and lightly smoldering) wall when a little more light signaling awareness entered Ace's grey orbs. When all the freckled raven did was moan at the extra jostling and clutch at the blue coat a little tighter Sabo started worrying more. Ace is almost never _this_ pliant. Even if he's injured, the charcoal-brained idiot should be telling (ordering) Sabo to drag his ass back to Lu and off this damnable hunk of wood. Or, at the very least, grumbling curses at the universe (and Sabo and Luffy) about the whole ordeal.

Bracing Ace back up against the wall, Sabo reached into his jacket and pulled out the vial containing their little brother's blood. Trying to get Ace to focus on him, the blond lightly tapped on Ace's cheek. He couldn't help forming another wince from how bleary and worn-down his brother's gaze looked as Ace tried to focus on him.

/( _WorryAnxiousConcern Hope_ ) Ace, can you hear me? You know who I am?/

/( _ConfusionExhaustion Relief_ ) …Sabo…/

/( _Relief Happy_ ) Right, it's me! You are very hurt. You need to drink this, okay? Will help you to feel better, 'kay?/ As he asked, Sabo held the crimson-filled vial up in front of Ace's eyes and waited for his brother's permission. He knew they were short on time but he didn't want Ace, while in this confused state, to fight him (once was enough) and risk a second chance of breaking and wasting the thing that would help him recover quicker.

Ace spent a good few seconds groggily eyeing the blood before projecting a feeling of agreement, adding the barest nod of his head.

Tilting his brother's head while continuing to helping hold the older up, Sabo carefully poured the tablespoon of blood into Ace's mouth. He sympathized with Ace when he caught the other's grimace. Neither of them liked having to drink Lu's blood nor the taste of the coppery fluid. At least it no longer felt as if their insides were burning after drinking the stuff like when they were little. Small mercies and all that.

The younger brother grabbed Ace's left arm and pulled it across his shoulder, gripping and holding it in place with his own left hand. Wrapping his right arm around Ace's lower back, Sabo gently—or at least tried to be gentle, Ace's pained groan gave his opinion of how that went—shifted his brother to get a better grip.

He mentally nudged at Ace to get his attention.

/Come on. We have to go meet up with Lu. He needs us now. Almost done. Over soon./ Sabo kept this chant up the entire way back to the main deck where Luffy was. Ace was gradually becoming more sure-footed and aware of what was going on, though he's still a far cry from being in any condition to really assist in the brothers' escape.

Once the two finally reached the stairs that lead to the deck, Sabo took a quick second to re-check Ace and to get him to tone down the flames before beginning the ascent. After all of this, it would suck if they were spotted upon arrival.

The sight that met them upon opening the door was very similar to the one that Marco saw. There were only few differences in that more bodies were spread about the area in various states of consciousness and pain. Some were slumped against the rail looking very out of breath. Rantings, curses and threats drew his attention to the ship's mainmast where a crowd was gathered. Looking up, Sabo felt a tired and amused grin pull at his lips and stuffed down the urge to snort. Luffy had managed to get quite a few of the enemy pirates caught up in their own ship's rigging.

(The blond mentally saved the sight so he could draw it out in detail later. Ace would want to see this once the raven recovered more _and_ Sabo could probably sell copies for a pretty beri. Who wouldn't pass up the chance to spread something like _this_ around the world? Bastards deserved it anyway for all the misery they caused him and his precious siblings anyhow.)

/Lu, we're here! Keep them occupied just bit longer while I try to get Ace closer to the _Wild Card_. / Turning to head in the direction of their ship, Sabo cast furtive glances towards the center of the commotion as he made his way over. /I need you to make yourself more noticeable. I can still suppress my presence but Ace is too weak and can't at the moment. They might notice him./

Sabo immediately sensed the change in his baby brother's aura. It flared brighter, filled with an air of protectiveness and rumbling nuances of anger—anger that grew a touch stronger, traces of bloodlust seeping into it. With Ace being this close, the dragon had either caught a glimpse of the other's condition or better sensed it. The middle brother just hoped it was all enough to keep everyone on deck preoccupied.

* * *

' _This is getting to be embarrassing…_ '

Light blue eyes scanned the many siblings currently climbing around in the rigging as they chased after a black-haired, straw-hatted "monkey" (as Haruta had termed the runty brat).

After venturing down to try and make another trip around the _Moby Dick_ 's deck and almost getting caught several times, only for the boy to manage an awkward twist out of the way at the last minute, the chase was taken back into the sky. Even Marco, to his chagrin, had tried and failed to apprehend the little devil. Now they were going on thirty minutes of this ridiculous farce and, though he had slowed down since Marco'd first seen him, the straw-hatted brat looked like he could go for another thirty.

Jozu, after the previous sprint about the deck, had come to join the little crowd of commanders assembled around the first division leader. Annoyance and irritation were rolling off Vista, Izou, Jozu, and Rakuyo in waves, the latter having seated himself next to Jozu to the side of the main group of division leaders. All were stewing over their failures to catch "the little beast".

Haruta and Fossa were probably doing the same from their tangled positions up in the rigging. The two hadn't taken their personal close-captures of the kid very well and had tried again when little brat went up the mast (again). Sadly, the two had gotten trapped themselves, along with several other siblings.

"It almost looks like a decorated tree," Vista mused from the phoenix's left, fingering his mustache. Marco and the other commanders shot him deadpanned looks, clearly unamused with the comment. The swordsman looked back at the scene muttering, "Well, it does."

Izou had a small fan out and was snapping it open and closed. "Does anyone know what that explosion was a few minutes ago? We haven't heard anything about that."

"It was probably caused by the rookie we captured. Thatch's watching him and likely taking care of it yoi." Marco is a little troubled over the incident, too, but is trusting the Fourth'd be able to deal with the problem.

The phoenix's present concern revolved more around how to catch a certain straw hat wearing menace and making sure the troublesome brat didn't accidentally fall to his death. He'd tried to go after the shrimp earlier in his zoan form though met with no success. The large Phoenix couldn't maneuver amongst the sails and rigging well enough to nab the brat, who'd expertly navigated himself through the densest portions of lines, ropes, beams and canvas to evade Marco. At one point, the First Division Commander almost flew into one of the yardarms because he'd been too focused on Strawhat.

"Why's the little bugger smiling _now_?"

Rakuyo looked at Jozu in exasperation as he replied, "He's been 'smiling' the whole damned time if you hadn't noticed, idiot."

"No. Earlier it felt more…wild." Jozu pointed up at said menace. "Now it looks kinda…happy? Like somethin' good's happened."

Marco and the others shared a glance before looking back at the monkey-child. He raised an eyebrow at how apt his brother's description of the new expression on Strawhat's face was. The other thin brow rose when he realized that the kid's presence had somehow become more noticeable; the annoying shouting also changing cadence minutely.

Vista caught Marco's slight frown. "What's wrong?"

"It's weird," the zoan drawled. All the commanders were now looking at their eldest blond brother, confusion in their expressions. "We could sense him fine before. However now even those who can barely use Observation Haki should be able to sense the stupid brat, yoi."

"You think it's intentional," Izou stated more than asked, flicking the fan shut with a tiny snap.

Marco tuned out his brothers to concentrate on the presences around him. The obnoxious child—if anything, the runt's shouts have only gotten _louder_ in the past handful of minutes—swinging about above them was like a bright beacon demanding his attention. It was fairly distracting as Marco used Observation Haki to scan the area. The search revealed two surprises he hadn't noticed making their way across the deck.

The other division leaders present startled when their brother whipped around while shouting, "Behind us yoi!"

Heads spun to see what had caught the First's attention. They were treated to the sight of a lightly smoldering mummy—should their brother-to-be even be out of bed?—being helped/dragged across the deck by a blond—

"Is that kid seriously wearing a _tailed-coat_?" Rakuyo gaped.

"He also has an actual top hat on his head. With…goggles?" Izou chimed in.

"Appearance is the cliché gentleman. He supposed to be a pirate?" Vista wondered, staring at the duo.

Jozu grumbled, "When'd that one even get here?"

The Seventh Commander pointed above with a semi-raised arm, "Wait, this whole time that we've spent chasing monkeybutt up there," his finger turned to point at the escape attempt in action, "there was another brat onboard grabbing the fire-punk?"

"Looks that way yoi," Marco answered, taking off across the deck to head off the duo's escape. The other four were quickly on his heels and moving to help flank the would-be escapees.

Right as the commanders reached the teens, surrounding them, a shadow flew over Marco's head. A short look up gave the First a flashing glimpse of red and black. Settling his gaze back on those in front, he's surprised at the sudden appearance of the boy they'd been trying to catch all morning.

Breathing hard—' _So he's more tired than he let on yoi._ '—the child crouching slightly and glaring at those surrounding him and his accomplice; anger and determination rolled off the small brat in giant waves. Strawhat angled his head toward the blond and captain behind him, making certain to keep the pirates before him in sight. The blond dressed as a gentleman spared a glance at the runt then also shifted himself to acquire a better view of those surrounding them, letting the little kid have his back.

Facing the blond, Vista took a step forward. "What do you think you kids are doing?"

Marco noted that the younger black-haired boy tensed as Vista addressed them, settling his stance a tad lower and looking ready to battle at a moment's notice. The smaller brat faintly relaxed fisted hands just before the gentleman-like blond behind him spoke.

"We are simply retrieving that which is _ours_." Blond Brat smiled at them, however the smile and his voice were layered in ice. The chill remained as he continued politely, "Suppose you fine gentlemen would kindly consider sparing us a boat? Even should you not, _our_ dear Captain here shall be returning with _us_ back to _our_ ship and crew."

"Sorry, yoi. But our captain wishes for Ace to remain on _this_ ship." His reply's met with both intruders tensing; darker blue eyes narrow in angry disapproval and Strawhat's face twists as it shows the same. The blond withdrew a long pipe that had been strapped to his back, the younger actually started to growl—' _He's really_ growling _, yoi? Was the brat raised by animals?'_ —at the five veteran, commanding pirates. The hostility coming from the little monkey-boy became stronger.

Blond Brat raised his eyes to stare at those trapping the three. His glare was glacial, promising pain to any who stood in the pair's way. "I see. That is unfortunate, I had hoped we could resolve this peacefully. Seeing that is no longer the case…"

A feeling of uncertainty and apprehension forming in his gut, Marco watched the blond turn his head towards the fire-user and barely heard a murmur of something like "Ace". Soon as the whisper sounded, a wall of flames erupted from the ground and encircled the trio. Jozu (standing off to Marco's right) and he found themselves a little too close to the flames, bringing out their Devil Fruit abilities on instinct to avoid serious burns. The others managed to leap back in time to dodge anything more serious than a mild singeing.

"You burned my kimono! This is expensive fabric you know!"

"You have others yoi."

"Shut it Birdy! This was one of my favorites! You're buying me a new one."

"Alright, alright."

"Uh, is it okay for those kids to be so close while he's all flame-y?" Izou rounded on the newcomer.

"Where have you been, Thatch? Weren't you _supposed_ to be keeping watch in the infirmary?"

Marco turned to watch a very singed-looking Thatch limp up to them. Behind him were their brothers (the ones left able to stand) looking on at the scene transpiring near the circle of fire.

Jozu, still partially covered in diamond, looked questioningly at the Fourth before asking, "What happened?"

"I was with Bay—who's gone to fetch Pops by the way—trying to keep Flame-Brain over there from flopping off his bed." Apparently, despite the roar of the blazing fire, the younger raven could still hear the commander for the statement elicited a deeper growl from the brat. "Then the kid quiets down only to literally _explode_ when we're barely two feet away! Next he sets the damn place on fire so we couldn't go after him. Look at my poor hair! Do you know how hard it is to get rid of the smell of burnt hair?!"

"Still, we should try to end this before Pops gets here yoi."

"Agreed," was Jozu's response.

Cracking his knuckles, the large diamond-man ran at the wall of flames separating the Whitebeard Commanders from the trio of rival pirates. It's as the Third barely gets beyond the flaming barrier that he's met with an immediate blow to the chest courtesy of a sandaled foot. The impact's more staggering than he expects and briefly halts his progress forward. A swift and strong smash to his shoulder, delivered by the pipe-wielding blond, follows up the kick without pause. Before he stumbled backwards out of the ring of fire, Jozu was able to see Ace's blazing flames covering the two brats trying to escape with him. It almost gave the impression that the two intruders had also eaten the Flame-Flame Fruit.

Izou's eyes widened at seeing his brother so easily pushed back. "Are you okay?"

"Little shits hit hard. Tiny one is much stronger than he looks. One dressed like some kinda gentleman almost felt like he cracked my armor with that stupid pipe of his. Both brats are also completely covered in Fire-Fist's fire. Looks like a second skin on them."

Thatch turned incredulous eyes on the bigger man. "They're _on fire_?! Are the flames hurting them? It's hot just standing ten feet from them!"

"Perhaps, Ace has better control over his flames than we thought yoi." Marco transformed his arms into wings and prepared to jump up and try to surprise the boys from overhead when a new force made itself known.

"What is happening here?"

Everyone on-deck turned to face the giant captain, finding him escorted by a none-too-pleased-looking Head Nurse Bay. Coming to stand behind his sons, Whitebeard looked at the flaming trio who were finally cornered.

"I ask again, what is happening here?"

"Ace is _ours_! We're taking him back!"

Marco faced the wall of flames, which had died down some (he figured Ace was quickly becoming exhausted) and now allowed them a better view of the intruders, with surprise evident in his normally bored eyes. Light blues stared at the little runt who'd snarled those words. For a second there, he believed the boy's eyes had turned an almost gold color. Looking again, and seeing nothing but black pools, the phoenix dismisses it as a simple trick of the firelight. Glancing at the blue-clad blond, Marco found he held a firm (although gentle) grip on the semi-conscious, young captain while murmuring to the younger intruder.

' _Probably trying to calm him down. Keep the brat from doing anything rash, yoi_ ,' he thought. The younger's growling was easing up a bit compared to the words he'd _snarled_ —seriously, what human _does_ that unless they really were raised by wild animals?—at their Pops. Both brats' forms go rigid, the runt resuming his louder growls, when the giant captain started laughing.

"Gurararara! And what if I said I want that brat to remain here?" Whitebeard gave a toothy smile to the boys. Pops' words barely left his mouth when a snarled bellow reverberated deck-wide.

" _ACE IS OURS_!"

The depth of the exclamation—the words ringing with nothing short of Strawhat Brat's absolute conviction in them—shocked those watching. However, what followed unsettled even Whitebeard.

For soon as the little brat shouted this, an overwhelming presence saturated the atmosphere onboard the _Moby Dick_. Though the three younger pirates were the obvious center of it, the Phoenix-zoan couldn't decipher who was emitting the strange aura; both brats wore looks bearing the potential to kill. Absently, Marco noted that the runt's growling had softened. What really threw the commanders was that none of the trio bore signs of being affected like the rest of those currently on-deck. (Although, with Ace being barely conscious, they could only _assume_ he hadn't been negatively affected.)

The First Division Commander resisted wanting to shiver at the oppressing sensation; even his Phoenix felt agitated and a little cowed. He deemed the sensation comparable to what a defenseless sheep might feel while it cowered before a hungry, snarling wolf. It has been a long time since Marco felt akin to being nothing more than prey.

Looking at Pops, the firebird-man could see that even mighty Whitebeard had been affected (although clearly not to the level his sons and daughter were). Marco _was_ close enough to their father to spot the goosebumps decorating the large arms, though.

Seeing how shaken up his sons were, Whitebeard covertly signaled Marco to ready himself. Receiving a confirming nod, the giant pirate directed a focused blast of Conqueror's Haki at the boys.

Angry flames, which had been dying in intensity, spluttered and perished (save for those coating the Spade captain). The one wearing a top hat and carrying Ace faltered, presenting Marco the desired opening to grab Newgate's hopefully-new-son from the younger blond. The smallest one snarled, twisting oddly as he jumped to attack (claw?) the Whitebeard Commander lunging for the dazed would-be-rescuer supporting Fire-Fist. From the corner of his eye, Marco caught a shadow of fear lancing through Strawhat's features when the zoan's hands latched onto the wounded Spade's burning body. Swiping the younger man from Top Hat, accidentally knocking the other aside in his haste, the Whitebeard Pirate ignored the testy flames (relying on his Fruit's almost-instant healing) and dodged the snarling brat's attack—a punch that splintered the already-charred and smoldering Adam's Wood decking.

Sweeping Ace into a bridal-style carry, the motion causing the last of the flames to die, he leapt away. Vista dashed in, the broadside of his blade bared, to take the next hit aimed at the First Division Commander. The animalistic snarl that gurgled forth from the smaller figure stated Strawhat _did not_ appreciate the other's interference. A louder one sounded as the Fifth blocked the feral-like runt's next attempt to circumvent the large swordsman.

With Ace in his arms—setting aside questions of how/why the young captain's flames had remained active even after Marco was fairly positive Pops' haki blast had knocked the younger man unconscious—Marco turned to watch the two who had attempted to "rescue" the teen. The blond was struggling to stay standing, sweat forming on his brow as he used his pipe to remain upright. Meanwhile, his accomplice was still making a hardy effort to bypass Vista without directly engaging in combat—smart move on the runt's part. The Phoenix-zoan also noticed that even as the growling little menace made attempts at retrieving Ace again, the brat always kept himself between his unsteady companion and Vista. This same observation brought to mind something Marco _should've_ seen earlier.

The blond gentleman had remained conscious and _standing_ (however unsteady it may be). The raven-haired menace beside him was fully conscious and only displayed a mild drop in energy (though his heavy panting had increased). Fire-Fist, if he hadn't been so injured, would probably be in a similar state if he were anything like these two.

The two intruders (plus a bleary Ace) had been blasted by Pops' haki! Sure, it was merely a tiny fraction of their adoptive father's full power; however similar showings usually resulted in the target(s) dropping like flies. It's almost like they're _used_ to the overpowering force of the King's Will but that should be close to impossible. Right? There are extremely few individuals in the _whole world_ capable of wielding that particular type of haki, meaning an even smaller chance of these three coming into contact with someone of that caliber. Besides that, Marco is even more confused by something else.

' _How is the runt only a little dazed and unsteady while the blond can barely stand?'_ If anything, Pops' blast only served to further piss the snarling menace off.

Strawhat stumbled as he went to deliver a punch and high-kick combo against Vista. The attack, although weakened, still pushed the large swordsman back a few feet. An accidental step nearer the recovering blond as the Fifth blocked another try for Fire-Fist caused the brat to snarl and bare his teeth. Vista mumbled a curse under his breath when the brat's next strike, accompanied by a surprising amount of bloodlust, forced him to add Armament Haki to his sword. It would've probably broken from the unexpected show of strength otherwise.

Whitebeard, wanting to put an end to the confrontation before it escalated further, released another small force of haki. To ensure both intruders went down, the pirate captain made the burst a few notches stronger than the previous one. Thankfully, that was the last straw for Fire-Fist's duo of would-be-rescuers. The blue-coated, pipe-wielder collapsed to the deck, out cold. Strawhat Brat crumpled with a weak growl to his hands and knees, wheezing, and then the shaky arms gave way. Dark eyes fixed on the limp form in Whitebeard's son's arms for a long minute until they finally slipped close, a small whine escaping the little raven as he passed out.

Sighs of relief whispered through the air, some more loudly than others.

Marco held the unconscious captain a tad tighter, something akin to guilt fluttering in his chest. He isn't sure if anyone else saw the despair swirling amongst the gleaming rage and denial in Strawhat's eyes before they shut. What is Ace to this boy, who looked so broken at having the captain taken? This wasn't in-line with their information on the Spade Pirates by a long shot!

"Now that they're quiet, tie those two up against the mast and take your new brother back to the infirmary." The big, white-mustachioed man turned to gaze at a rather shaken Izou, Jozu, and Rakuyo. "You three help your brother and sisters sort out the infirmary. Bay says that the little hothead did a number on the place." He looked down at the burnt Fourth Commander, who'd fallen to the ground upon feeling that mysterious and overpowering aura. "Thatch, go back down and have one of the nurses check you over. If you're able to do so, come back up and keep watch on these two cheeky brats."

After receiving confirmation of his orders, Whitebeard turned to head back to his cabin and do some paperwork that was due.

"Pops." Whitebeard stopped and waited for Marco to come up to him. "What _was_ that? It felt like what we'd sensed back when we first picked up Fire-Fist, only stronger yoi."

"I don't know, my son. Perhaps one of our 'rescuers' or Ace will answer that when they wake." Seeing his son's answering nod and resigned look, Whitebeard left them to carry out his commands.

Walking by the mainmast, he paused and looked up. Resuming his trek, Newgate said, "And some of you help with getting your siblings down before they hurt themselves. They look like tree ornaments."

Vista couldn't help the moody, and rather haughty, glare he shot his brothers.

"I told you so."

Izou scowled and whacked him with that stupid fan.

* * *

 **A/N: So here we are at the end of the chapter. Anytime I add in new terms or language that isn't English (and _nobody_ likely knows the meaning of, especially if I made it up) I'll add here at the end for you! And FYI, any terms/phrases that Luffy or his brothers say that's in italics (or looks normal if the rest is already italicized) is a piece of Luffy's native language; remember he's a dragon, specifically a Drakkón (more on that in future chapters, don't want to give too much away just yet!).**

 **Yes, "singeing" is spelled correctly. Like 'burn' goes to 'burning', 'singe' goes to 'singeing'. Otherwise they'd be singing and I don't know why that would happen if someone was lit on fire. Unless they're crazy, in which case I would take them to a crowded place and tell them to have fun but don't hurt anyone (too badly). :-)**

 **P.S. Next time: What was Curiel doing while hell broke loose below him? Will Thatch finally remember something about 'ASL'? Marco talks to the Spade Pirates about keeping Ace, what will they say? And what happens when Luffy wakes up?**

 **Terms:**

 ** _Kisú_ —[key-sue] what the Drakkón called Observation Haki; _ki_ being the latent natural energy all living things possess (yes, the idea of Chi and Ki from the East and Middle-East, sue me) and derived from _kii_ [kai] which means 'life'; _sú_ meaning something similar to 'aware' and 'know' and derived from _suls_ [like 'sauce' only with an 'l' sound instead of 'ah', so it'd be like 'sls'] which is the general term for 'sight' or 'see'. Loosely translates to 'inner-eye', more direct translation is 'energy-sight'.**


	4. The Spades' Ultimatum!

**A/N: Thanks for your support everyone! Foot is doing much better (not allowed to walk or put pressure on it for another 6 or so weeks though** **) but still looks like a badly painted Easter egg due to the bruising. Am now called a "Knight of the Gimpy Order" at work too. Yay me.**

 **Computer is being a butt-nugget right now so only have part of chapter done and uploaded to the site. Am posting what is already on here right now because I** ** _did_** **promise Chapter 4 to you guys. Rest of Chapter 4 will become part of Chapter 5 which will hopefully be out this weekend.**

 **Disclaimer (didn't forget again! I'm on a roll!): You recognize it, I don't own it. Again, would love it if I could be friends with some of these characters (the wonderful chaos we could create!), but that is sadly not an option…*sighs in disappointment*.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: The Spades' Ultimatum! Jozu Gets the Short Straw**

* * *

Normally, Curiel would have jumped to his brothers' aid at a moment's notice. The only reason he hadn't was because of the current task he'd assigned himself.

After calling out about the intruder onboard and ringing the signal bell hanging outside the crow's nest, the Tenth Division Commander had lifted the spyglass back to his eye and went back to watching the ship of New World rookies. The occasional glance down towards the deck, or directly below him among the ship's rigging, kept him abreast of the situation with the pint-sized gremlin running around on their ship. What Curiel was more focused on, and concerned about, lay out at sea.

Honestly, he was a little worried about what their new potential brother would be like as he watched the younger captain's crew and ship.

First, the crew had simply laid out flat on the deck, one had been slumped over of the ship's guardrail, while a cowboy-hatted man steered the ship out of reach of their cannons. Once safely out of range, a small guy in a turban had gotten up off the deck and jumped onto the back of the really large man still hanging over the ship's side and proceeded to lay down on him. Another tall man with a yellow band around his head soon joined the pair in dangling half off the ship. The four still lying on the deck didn't even budge when the one wearing the beige cowboy came down and looked to be yelling at them.

Curiel sweatdropped at the sight of the four suddenly rolling around while those hanging over the side seemed to raise their arms in agreement with whatever was likely being said. Beige Hat Guy face-palmed before shaking his own fists at those on the deck before him. An occasional kick was delivered to the ones imitating rolling logs but, so far, failed to incite anything other than more rolling around from the crew.

An increase in the noise below brought his attention back to the situation at hand on the _Moby_. Looking down, Curiel saw that the straw hat boy was making another lap around the deck with about fifty of their brothers chasing him. When a grab or lunge was directed at the child, he would dodge or bend out of the way last-minute. Oftentimes, the one who made a lunge would end up colliding with someone else or an object that was in an unfortunate location. Seeing some of these collisions made Curiel wince in sympathy for his brothers (some of those crashes looked _painful_ ) and for the clean-up that would be necessary after this whole fiasco.

' _We're considered the strongest pirates in the New World…We fight under one who is considered the Strongest Man in the World…We've taken out any enemy who has come after Pops' head._ ' Curiel gave an exasperated sigh and shook his head, ' _Yet we can't catch a little twelve-year-old boy…_ '

The Tenth Commander understood the desire to not hurt the little guy in their attempt to apprehend him. Curiel also understood that not many of his siblings were morning people and several of them required coffee (himself included) to fully wake up and start functioning like a normal person—at least, "normal" as the term applied to their eclectic bunch.

However, he didn't believe that the Whitebeard Pirates should have to spend _fifteen damn minutes_ trying to trap and catch a little _child_! Granted, the ball of mayhem in question was a speedy and agile little devil (who looked to be enjoying the chaos he was instilling if Curiel was reading that large smirk correctly), and he had a good set of lungs on him judging by the continued demands (with several different variations) of "Give back Ace you bastards!" that the boy was constantly shouting. But _still_ , as a Whitebeard Pirate this whole farce of a kid's capture was _humiliating_!

Attempting to distance himself from the happenings below (and trying to deny the associated absurdity), Curiel tuned out the chaos went back to watching the rival crew and their activities.

…Which now included everyone, except Beige-Hat, leaning over the ship's side. While Beige-Hat—appearing to be ranting with how he kept glaring at the rest of the crew and making odd gestures at random intervals—was pacing behind them, the pirates hanging off the rail were very obviously against whatever was being said since they were making negative (and a couple very rude) motions back.

Curiel's perch vibrated with the force of the explosion that suddenly occurred somewhere on the ship. "Either our fiery new brother finally woke up or some idiot tried to shoot a cannon," he muttered.

The Spade Pirates apparently also heard the explosion, as all instantly perked up and began cheering and jumping along their ship's side rail. Even Beige-Hat joined in their hollering and fist-pumping the air. One of the crew (a large man wearing a dark cloak) ran to the helm, looking to be preparing to steer the ship closer to the _Moby_.

After another handful of minutes—Curiel was too absorbed in tuning out his own crew's activities to know exactly how long it had been—one of his fellow lookouts shouted for him to look down at the deck. The situation had escalated quickly.

' _When did that guy get here? Did he cause the explosion earlier?_ '

Ace had appeared on-deck and was being supported by young man in a blue tail-coat and black top-hat. The two were surrounded by Marco, Izou, Vista, Jozu, and Rakuyo with his weapon, Macey. Watching the confrontation, Curiel was startled when the little straw hat wearing boy rocketed in from nowhere to take a defensive stance between the two older boys and the assembled division commanders.

"Did you see that!? That brat just jumped fifty feet!" Curiel looked around in confusion before leaning over the edge of the crow's nest railing to look down.

' _What...the…_ ' Honestly, he didn't know whether to be amused, worried, or embarrassed at the sight of several of his brothers—is that Fossa and Haruta there too?—tangled and dangling in the mast and sail rigging. "What did you just say?"

The man (from Fossa's division Curiel remembered) answered, "Kid started sliding back down the mast here before he just _launched_ himself over to where the other two were. Didn't look like the distance bothered him at all!"

A burst of flames turned Curiel back to the trapped boys. Who were now standing back-to-back in the midst of the small inferno…also looking like they were on fire and not giving a damn.

' _They've got guts, I'll give them that._ '

He saw Thatch had finally made his debut on the scene and was limping over to the gathered commanders and trapped trio. Curiel had an uneasy feeling swirling in his stomach while he watched those around the boys try and capture them. Pops soon arrived, followed by a rather irritated Whitey Bay. The unease in his stomach only grew as Pops talked to the trio and Ace's flames started to die down some (the teen was probably getting tired and hadn't looked to be in any condition to fight).

"ACE IS OURS!"

Out of nowhere, Curiel was hit with a sensation akin to almost complete powerlessness. He felt like an insect or tiny and insignificant animal caught in the gaze of a giant, hungry beast. Vaguely, before dropping the spyglass next to him and backing up to lean against the wall of the lookout room behind him, Curiel saw Thatch drop to the ground while staring at the three boys. The intense feeling ceased after he sensed their Captain send a small blast of haki at the trio.

Trying to stop the shaking in his hands and calm himself down, Curiel thought about what had just happened. The blast of that… _whatever_ it was had to have come from either Ace or one of the intruders. ' _It wasn't Conqueror's Haki…felt similar to that but enough for me to think that's actually it. With how strong that feeling was, wouldn't some of the weaker members faint like when they are exposed to a blast of the King's Will?_ '

Wanting to see how the others were faring, and finally calming down himself, Curiel pushed off the wall he'd been leaning against and moved back to the lookout's wooden railing. Looking around at his brothers, the commander saw that none of the crew looked to have passed-out from the abrupt onslaught. Everybody, including the other commanders, just looked very shaken with some even border-line terrified.

So that feeling earlier most likely wasn't haki. It also hadn't felt like exaggerated killing-intent or bloodlust. What else could it have been then?

Searching for the intruders, he found them being tied to the base of the mainmast with rope. Ace was nowhere in sight so he must have been taken back to the infirmary.

Letting out a tense exhale and a brief full-body shake, Curiel bent down to retrieve the spyglass at his feet. Checking to make sure it hadn't broken, and he's lucky that it hadn't or he would be the person paying for a new one, he raised it back to his eye. It was still his shift as watch for another few hours.

* * *

Luffy groaned as he slowly woke.

There was dull pounding in his skull and his limbs were sore. Why were they sore? What had he been doing? His butt was also getting a little sore so he'd been sleeping for a while, though he was still very tired. And when exactly did he decide to take a nap?

Groggily, Luffy sensed Sabo was close by (and felt like he was asleep) but for some reason Ace was much further away. Reaching out along the thread in his mind that lead to Ace, Luffy was confused when he was met with shadows and numbness. Why couldn't he feel how Ace was? It was similar to how his brothers sometimes felt when they were deep asleep and nothing was going to wake them up, but even then he'd get something of an emotional impression. Ace was completely void of emotion. Luffy couldn't feel anything under the numb and shadow.

It was at this moment Luffy became awake enough to realize two things.

One: Ace had been stolen and Sabo had decided that they would try to rescue him. Remembering this brought back the rage Luffy felt earlier at the audacity of the enemy crew. He burned with the desire to teach them a lesson about taking what was his! To _claw_ and _bite_ and _roast_ the bastards that had stolen from him. _Ace and Sabo were his_!

Even though Sabo and Ace were Human they called him _kynehs_. His _brothers_. His _asalkynn_! Luffy refused to lose either member of his family again! He was stronger than before!

Banishing the fatigue he still felt, Luffy began to squirm around, trying to relieve the ache in his posterior and limbs. He was restless and wanted to get to Ace! Skin tingled with the urge to sprout scales, his back muscles were tense as urges to flex phantom wings and tail rolled through him.

Unfortunately, it was here that Luffy's turbulent emotions hit another bump.

Two: Luffy was tied to something big. This new sensation burst through his restlessness and anger, leaving a charged calm in its wake. He _hated_ being bound or caged. Experience had taught him that such a thing meant nothing but helplessness, pain, and suffering. It was second only to seeing his precious brothers being hurt or taken away.

The new knowledge of his current predicament had Luffy throwing his eyes wide open in panic and start to strain against the ropes. He could sense there were others nearby so Shifting was a big 'No' right then, so he tried to concentrate on calling for help from his brothers while fighting the constricting feeling his Human form had taken on.

This was what greeted Sabo upon his less than pleasant return to consciousness. Feigning sleep (no need to alert whoever was watching they were both awake) Sabo tried to call out to Luffy and calm the panicking young dragon down before anything happened. An out-of-control, mad, panicked dragon would be disastrous for everyone involved, including Luffy. None of the brothers wanted a repeat of bad history.

/( _CalmCalmCalm!_ ) Luffy! It's okay! You're fine! It's just rope! You can escape just fine./

/( _FearPanicHateTrappedTrappedPanic!_ ) SABOSABOSABO! ACEACEACE!/

/( _CALM Protect CALM_ ) LUFFY! CHILL! I'm here! Right here! You can't lose it right now./

Luffy took comfort in the feelings Sabo was projecting to him. Gradually, his anxiety melted to a distant hum and itch in the back of his psyche. His Human form still felt a little small and confining, but was more bearable than before and luffy had an easier time of ignoring his desire to Shift.

Though Sabo could feel Luffy still shaking through the rope binding them to the giant wooden structure, he figured he managed to at least get through to his little brother as Luffy stopped the desperate mental calls for him and Ace.

/You okay now?/

/( _Stressed Dislike Confined_ )/

/( _Calm Nice Calm Relax_ ) Just breathe, Lu. In. Out. In. Out. Not trapped. Simple _rope_ can't hold us, especially you. You're fine. I'm here. /

/( _Mad Irritated_ ) They took Ace again./

/I figured so, seeing as how we're tied to a giant wood pole. I'm faking being asleep. How many are there?/

/( _Bright sun almost overhead…Several people by stairs toward ship back…Some near big chair toward bow…Three-Four above…Couple by rail in front…Big Mustache-Man hidden [in cabin top of stairs?]_ )/

Sabo thought over the impressions and images Luffy sent him. Though he could sense Captain Whitebeard, Luffy couldn't see him but felt his aura coming from the rear of the ship where some stairs and possibly the captain's cabin was. There were four lookouts above them with probably at least one watching them at all times. Several rival pirates surrounded them and were milling about on the deck (and probably also keeping an eye on them) too.

/Luffy, you saw that the sun was close to being directly overhead right? That means it will probably be lunch soon. Most of the people out here will likely head down to the galley to eat and leave only a guard or two up here to watch us./

/( _Agreement Curious_ )/

/Let's be 'good captives' until then, 'kay? After only a couple of them are left to watch us, you cut the rope and we'll try to make a break for Ace and then head back to our ship again./

/( _Agreement Excited Mad Happy_ )/

/Head is killing me…You good to watch for a bit? Will try to nap for a bit and sleep it off./

/( _Unhappy Mad Concern_ ) Stupid Giant Mustache-Guy made my head hurt too. Okay?/

/I'll be fine. Just gonna take a quick nap. Wake me once we're set to go./

* * *

"What did you call me up here for yoi?"

Holding the spyglass with arms folded across his chest, Curiel stared at his brother and replied, "They're up to something."

"They're tied to the mast and are unconscious, yoi. I doubt they're planning anything." Marco had even checked before flying up to the crow's nest at Curiel's beckoning.

He'd been on the way to the infirmary to check on the young hothead and make sure that Thatch had gone to start preparing lunch. Passing the mast where the two captive 'would-be rescuers' were bound, a glance had him switching directions and heading their way. Marco thought he saw the small red-vested child waking up.

Closer inspection led Marco to believe the two were still unconscious (though little Strawhat seemed tense). He checked the ropes to ensure that there wasn't a chance of the two young pirates escaping should they wake up unsupervised.

Hearing Curiel's voice, Marco returned his attention to the present. His brother wore an expression that was part frustration and part confusion.

"No! Not _those_ two," he huffed. Unfolding his arms, Curiel pointed one of his hands out to sea exclaiming, " _Those_ guys! _They_ are acting suspiciously!"

The phoenix raised an eyebrow at this statement. The bored look he normally wore not betraying the slight curiosity that his brother's words brought forth.

"I'm serious. When we subdued those troublemakers below us the rest of their crew noticed. They moved their ship back out of cannon-firing range, but are staying closer than when they were tailing us."

"And this makes you think the three's crewmates are planning something, yoi?"

"Well…that and," Curiel held up one finger, "they appeared to have gotten into an argument with the one navigating the ship. Each member of the crew fought the guy to turn the ship back towards us."

Curiel had been a little dumbfounded while watching the rookie crew. Some of the pirates had pulled Beige-Hat away from the helm, and fought to keep him away, while the others worked at steering the ship. Between Beige Cowboy Hat who kept breaking away to get back to the helm, the crew which kept trying to wrest control away from Cowboy, and that no one seemed to be fully concentrating on actually steering, the ship had been zig-zagging alarmingly for a short while. Curiel was afraid that the Spade Pirates were going to capsize a few times as he watched them.

"Then," a second finger goes up, "most of the crew, after being beaten into the decking by the beige cowboy hat wearing navigator, started pacing in a big circle. And they looked to be chanting something while pumping their fists into the air."

When the crew seemed to finally realize that they weren't going to beat Cowboy Hat and gain control of the helm, they'd gone and formed a huddle in the middle of the weather-deck. Curiel stared in mild confusion as, a few minutes later, the huddlers stood as one and began to circle single-file around the entire deck. Looking closer, he saw the pirates seemed to be chanting something and each of them were throwing both fists into air at regular intervals. Beige-Hat Navigator made repeated appearances to yell at the crew-turned-organized-protestors.

"Afterwards," up goes a third finger, "Mr. Cowboy Navigator lassoed the entire crew like they were cattle. He tossed them, or dragged for the bigger guys, to the middle of the deck and started pace around them. The guy looked like he was _lecturing them_! Complete with lots of emphasized pointing and waving of his arms!"

Cowboy-hatted Navigator had come storming out of the helm and set upon roping his unruly crewmates into submission. Then, and none too gently, the guy had thrown the roped pirates into a large pile in the center of the deck before tying them all together in one massive bundle of rope and bodies. The rebellious crew had to sit and listen (after being interrupted once by one them Cowboy had gagged all of the crew) as the cowboy navigator lectured and ranted at them. For an hour!

A fourth finger joins the other three. "Finally, one of the pirates broke free ad released the others. They all ganged up on Cowboy Navigator, tied him up, gagged him, and hung him from the yard like a piñata. Once he was out of the way, one of the crew, big tall guy with a huge gun, went and stood at the bow. He held his gun up and started shouting at his crewmates, who shouted back while thrusting their weapons or fists in the air. Honestly looked like I was watching some kind of rally or pep-talk for a sporting event."

"Really yoi?" Curiel handed Marco the spyglass and gestured for him to take a look.

"So, you should go over there and talk to them. Pacify them and prevent another headache for us." Marco saw his brother point down towards the deck out of the corner of his eye. "Those two were enough for one day!"

"Hmmm…Yeah, I think I will yoi." Marco turned and gave back the glass after checking out the Spade Pirates' ship. "The 'Cowboy Navigator', as you called him, is no longer dangling from the yard and they are all in a huddle now."

Marco felt a small smirk form as Curiel rushed to witness this new development.

Changing his arms into fiery blue and yellow wings, Marco prepared to fly over to the rookie Spade crew's ship. When he was about to take off, a movement from below caught his eye. The smaller of the two menaces from that morning had finally woken up and was looking around.

Deciding it would be more prudent to deal with the troublemakers already onboard, the First Division Commander flew down to confront the kid. ' _Maybe he'll also explain about that odd presence from earlier, yoi_.'

* * *

Luffy, while examining his surroundings and keeping watch for a sleeping Sabo, suddenly caught the scent of fire.

It wasn't Ace's fire, didn't smell the same. It also didn't smell like a normal fire either. Tilting his head, Luffy tried to pinpoint where the scent was coming from while trying to remember why the flame's scent was familiar. The answer hit him as he realized the fire wasn't anywhere on the deck.

This fire had a similar scent to the big blue bird that had tried to grab him out of the rigging that morning. The only real difference was that this scent wasn't as strong as the bird's and had the undertone of Human to it.

Seeing no open flames or big bird down here on the ship's deck, Luffy turned his eyes skyward. He felt a brief surge of anger flood him. A guy descending to the deck on wings matching the flame-bird from earlier was the same pirate who re-stole Ace from Sabo. Luffy decided he didn't like this brother-stealing Human.

The dragon's Human skin itched, felt tight with the renewed desire to Shift. Scales struggled to grow, worsening the itch. Wings and tail had his back tensing as he fought against their appearance. A headache was forming as he forced back the horns trying to sprout from head. His jaw hurt from clenching it shut tight as his teeth ached to form into daggers.

Sabo was right, though. Luffy couldn't transform here. Bad things happened when others found out what he was. Revealing himself would only serve to put his dear brothers in more danger. Especially since he could sense how strong most of these enemy pirates were. Now that he could think more clearly (or at least clearer than before their botched rescue attempt), Luffy knew that even in his dragon form these Humans would be able to kill him. For now, Luffy would have to wait until he could safely change forms without anyone seeing.

Glaring, the little raven-hair watched Blue Bird-Man touch down in front of him. Luffy wondered if he should wake Sabo up for this encounter but quickly decided against doing so. The older brother had tried to hide it but Luffy knew Sabo was almost as exhausted as him. The only reason Sabo had suggested that Lu keep watch and wake him should anything happen was because he knew the younger wouldn't be able to sleep.

"Hey, Kid. It's good to see you're awake yoi." Luffy just continued to stare at the funny looking blond-haired man. Honestly, what was with that hair? It reminded him of a certain fruit Sabo and Ace showed him before. A 'pine-something'…

Ignoring the glare being aimed at him, Marco continued, "Are you feeling okay? Hungry or thirsty, yoi?"

The glare was toned down to a harsh stare. Luffy thought the guy seemed genuine in his concern for Luffy's health. He didn't feel like a Bad Guy. Still...stupid Bird-Man took Ace from them so Luffy didn't like him.

Seeing the kid lessen his glaring, Marco felt a bit hopeful that he was making progress. "My name's 'Marco' yoi. What's yours?"

"I was told not to tell strangers my name," Luffy replied with a blank face. "But thanks for telling me yours Pineapple-Head!" A huge grin stretched across Luffy's face and he cheered internally when he caught Marco's brow-twitch.

Marco sighed. He was making progress alright, but not the kind he was hoping for.

Ignoring the 'pineapple' comment, Marco continued on to his next question. "Earlier this morning, the Captain and we Commanders sensed something…unique, yoi. The only other time we sensed a similar feeling was when we met you, the blond tied behind you, and Ace after your captain's fight with Jinbei."

Luffy unconsciously tensed a little hearing this. Hoping the older pirate hadn't noticed, he tried to force his muscles to relax. ' _They can't know. They can't know. I never gave—_ '

But he had. He had! Luffy's eyes widened slightly at the memory of him unleashing his _válraas_ right before Ace was taken from them again. At that moment he gave in to his desire to show these Humans something of what they were dealing with. Luffy refocused his gaze to the tops of his folded legs. ' _Need to be careful! Can't let them know or Ace and Sabo will be in danger._ '

"Both times, all three of you were present. What we couldn't tell was who this feeling originated from, yoi." Marco had caught the boy's tensing and widening eyes, before he turned his face to stare at his legs. ' _Definitely knows something yoi_.'

Luffy just continued to stare at his knees, ignoring the older pirate before him.

"Do you know anything about this yoi?" The little raven-head looked back up at him. A blank look was in the younger's eyes; his mouth in a simple line, neither a smile nor frown at its edges.

"Why did you steal Ace? Why did you take him from us?"

Marco was surprised by the seriousness in the kid's voice. The blank look directed at him as the kid stared into his eyes was also unnerving. The division commander decided it would probably be best if he told the truth about the reasons behind his family's actions. Something told him that brushing the kid off or not giving a straight answer wouldn't be well-received.

"Our Captain, Edward Newgate, known to many as Whitebeard, heard of Ace a while ago. He felt Ace was an interesting youngster and had us do some research into what he was like, yoi." Marco couldn't tell if the kid was following or not. Nothing was given away in that blank, almost vacant, stare boring into him. However, Marco couldn't shake the feeling that he was being closely examined and judged by the runt.

Luffy waited for Bird-Man to continue. So far, the older man had been telling the truth. He wanted to see if that truthfulness remained and see what these pirates had discovered about his older brother.

"We found that Ace came from East Blue and spent some time in Paradise before forming the Spade Pirates. Reports indicated that he wasn't personally close to his crew, but he treated them well and looked after them, yoi." The blond Whitebeard Pirate paused here to try and see what the kid was making of all this. That stare was really starting to get to him. Shouldn't the kid need to blink more?

At this point, Luffy was getting a little irritated. The stupid "fire-chicken"—' _If I ate him…would he taste like chicken? His head looks like pineapple though so would he taste like that instead?'_ —wasn't answering his question. It was nice to know that none of Ace's, or the brothers', secrets were found out. Still, Chicken-Guy talked too much. ' _Kinda like Sabo sometimes…_ '

"You didn't answer."

Marco was taken slightly off-guard by the quiet statement. He even thought there'd been a barely audible growl preceding it.

"What yoi?" The brat's stare seemed to deepen and become heavier, piercing even further into the older's eyes and soul.

"Why did you—people —try to _steal Ace from us_?"

The phoenix caught the straw-hat kid's brief pause. It seemed as if the kid had to consciously choose that particular word over another. There was also a definite growl towards the end of that question.

Trying to ignore the unsettling glare (and that look had been upgraded back to a 'glare') directed at him, Marco assessed the young pirate's condition. The little brat was tense again and fidgeting. Marco could sense discomfort from the boy but, for some reason, didn't believe it was the ropes binding him to be the source of it. That unnerving look (which had even his phoenix on edge) never wavered though. Even as the zoan felt the kid becoming more irritated at him, that look remained unchanged.

"Whitebeard, Pops, wanted to make Ace part of our family." Luffy's irritation towards the blue fire-chicken ceased; his head tilted to the side in contemplation (and slight confusion) of what he was hearing. "Pops said that Ace was to be our 'new brother' yoi."

The Human-shaped dragon continued staring up at the blond pirate before him. Examining the man for any hint of deceit or untruth behind the words he spoke.

The Human—Marco—felt genuine in his belief of what his Captain had told him. Luffy also sensed sincerity in the man's tone and the affection felt whenever the man spoke of this 'pops' guy shone through Marco's eyes. Based on this short encounter, Luffy judged this person to be an overall 'Good Guy'.

He extended his mental reach to barely touch Marco's consciousness. Not enough to be actually sensed or truly felt by the Human, but enough to get a clearer grasp of the man's response to Luffy's next question.

Black eyes challenged light blue as he asked, "And you? What do you think of this decision?"

If Marco found the kid's stare to be uncomfortable before it was nothing compared to now. A strange pressure seemed to settle around the two and the phoenix felt as if his soul were bared for the other's viewing. The seriousness with which the runt asked that question also seemed abnormal coming from the youngster's mouth.

"…I think…Pops has his reasons for wanting Ace as a son. If the firecracker is anything like I believe him to be then I would be happy to call him 'brother' yoi."

The runt stared at him for good minute longer. Gradually, that odd pressure and feeling Marco was experiencing faded away. Strawhat lowered his dark eyes and looked back down to his knees, tilting his golden hat to shadow his face.

Turning, Marco began walking away from the little captive towards the _Moby Dick_ 's side railing. He needed to fly over to the Spade Pirates' ship to sort out the situation over there. Before, as Curiel so eloquently stated, they have to deal with another "headache".

"Ne!" Marco twisted and looked back at the straw-hat wearing kid, who was now sporting a giant grin and had his eyes closed. "Shishishishi…Good luck with getting Ace to call you 'family'!"

The First Division Commander was thrown a bit off at this sight. On the black-haired brat's face was a grin that seemed to mock the Whitebeards' desire to make Ace one of their own. It was at odds with the tone and words which encouraged their future efforts.

Marco absently nodded his head in acknowledgement at the grinning child. He changed priorities and went to find a babysitter for the two troublemaking captives before leaving the ship. Something in his gut told him these two Spade Pirates needed to be watched.

* * *

Zack had officially given up.

All morning long he had been defending his captain's orders and following them against the wishes and desires of the rest of the crew. After his failed roping of them (he still wants to know how they managed to escape his binds) and subsequent dangling from the mast's yard, he had finally given up. Zack didn't have Luffy's boundless energy and determination to deal with his crazy crewmates. So, he did the only sensible thing he could at the time.

Zack joined his crazy, idiotic crewmates in plotting to storm the Whitebeard Pirates flagship and rescue their even crazier "monster trio".

The first mate was also the only one who sensed a new presence on the _Wild Card_. The rest were still too busy drawing up and discarding plans. Looking about the deck revealed nothing though Zack still had the feeling of being watched. Rustling drew his eyes up…to alight on the figure of a giant and fiery blue and yellow bird sitting on the yard.

"Guys, we got company." Silence descended upon the group. Looking at their temporary leader, they turned as one to see what had garnered his attention.

Marco cocked his head and quietly trilled in amusement at the various looks of awe and disbelief directed at him. Only the guy with the beige cowboy hat seemed to have an underlying air of knowing as to who the bird really was. The moments of silence were shattered when the entire crew (barring Cowboy) suddenly leaped up and started making a racket.

Watching the Spade Pirates run about the deck, loud cries mixing together to create a (second for him) headache-inducing din, Marco was at first confused. The crew, barring the apparent Cowboy Navigator, were snatching up hooks, rope, cables and some odd-looking guns. The phoenix's mood quickly changed to mildly horrified when he caught on to what the small crew were actually shouting to each other.

"Quick! Grab it!"

"Don't let it get away!"

"It can be an apology to the Monster Trio for not coming sooner!"

"Luffy probably worked up a real appetite causing trouble over there."

"A welcome back snack for Ace!"

The phoenix squawked (he'll deny it if Thatch or Izou ever ask) in protest at finding ropes being thrown at him, the loud crew hoping to entangle and capture him. ' _I am NOT going to be somebody's food yoi!'_

Burning the ropes that managed to wrap around him, Marco took flight and circled around the ship. He soon discovered that the odd guns shot steel nets. Seeing as he wasn't too far above the water's surface Marco beat his wings to ascend so that he was out of (the surprisingly considerable) range of the crew's net-guns; he didn't want to chance not melting the thick wires of the net before falling into the sea. Not that Marco believed they rookie crew _could_ catch him, but you never know when one them might get a lucky shot. As the crew below continued in their capture attempts, his flames grew and flared in annoyance.

"KNOCK IT OFF YOU IDIOTS!"

All action came to an abrupt halt.

Taking the reprieve for what it was, Marco alighted on the upper deck behind where Cowboy stood on the lower. Here he could see the entire crew and use the beige-hatted man (who Marco guessed was the next person in charge after the troublesome captives currently aboard the _Moby_ ) as a buffer between him and the others.

' _Who sees a giant bird_ on fire _and thinks "food"?'_ The Whitebeard Pirate couldn't help questioning this crew's sanity. Then again, _those_ three were a part of this crew and two of them were in positions of leadership. In that light, the Spade crew's actions and sanity level made a bit more sense he had to grudgingly admit. ' _And Pops wants to make the ringleader of this crew one of his sons yoi._ '

Zack glanced up at the fiery bird, idly wondering how the man managed to make such lazy and bored expression while in that form, before eyeing his stupid fellow crewmates. He wouldn't put it passed one of the idiots to try a surprise attack. Honestly, the Spade Pirates' first mate was a little surprised the commander behind him hadn't just torched a couple of them.

The rest of the crew lowered the ropes and tools they were planning on using to bring down the unexpected exotic bird. Slowly, they all turned to look at the first mate who had hollered at them.

Zack huffed. "Now that I have you idiots' attention," he gestured at the fiery bird standing behind him on the higher deck, " _that_ is Whitebeard's First Division Commander. He is Marco the Phoenix." Zack looked at each of his fellow crewmates in the eye before continuing, "He is _not_ food for the Monster Trio."

This statement was met with shuffling and attempts to hide the individual members' chosen methods of capture.

Marco quietly shifted to his human form now that he was no longer in danger of being put on someone's menu. '" _Monster trio"…Are they this crew's pets?'_ He then recalled some of the things the crew had ben shouting a couple minutes prior. Specifically, two names that had been mentioned. ' _Wait, they are talking about those three, yoi?'_

"That settled…" Zack turned to face the Whitebeard commander. Hooking his thumbs in his belt loops, the Spade Pirates' first mate glared up at Marco as he asked, "Care to tell us what brings you to our ship, Mr. Phoenix?"

Marco took in all the glares the entire Spade crew now sported after hearing who he was.

With his signature bored look, he addressed the man wearing the cowboy hat. "Thanks for stopping them yoi. You are?"

"Zack, First Mate of the Spade Pirates. I only did it because I wanted some answers," Zack glanced at the numbskulls standing about the ship, "And to keep the idiots behind me from doing something too stupid." His eyes flicked back to the First Commander's form. "Now, about what brings you here…"

"Right, well…" Marco looked over the assembled crew, "I'm here to ask that you not do anything that might cause _another_ headache for my Captain and fellow crewmates, yoi." He saw the giant man and turban-wearer high-five at that statement. The rest of the Spades simply grinned and chuckled, an air of pride and fondness about them.

Smirking at the commander Zack asked, "And why should we listen to you? You Whitebeards kidnapped Ace and then captured our other captains when they went to get him back. Why shouldn't I set these idiots loose on your ship?" ' _Besides the obvious fact that Sabo and Luffy said not to and we are all weak compared to those three.'_

"Isn't Ace the captain of the Spade Pirates yoi?" Marco was a little confused. Their intel had them believing that it was Ace who led these pirates, yet this man said otherwise.

"He is. He shares the title with our other captain, Sabo," replied the tall man with an equally large shot gun leaning against the railing.

"Oi. What about Little Luffy? He is kinda like a captain right?" Asked the giant man standing next the short turban-wearing crewmate.

Okay, Marco was becoming _very_ confused. Who heard of a pirate crew captained by _three_ _different_ people?

Sighing, the Spades' first mate decided to clarify a few things for the undoubtedly baffled rival pirate (though he wasn't completely sure, that bored look never left the phoenix's face). "Ace and Sabo are co-captains of the Spade Pirates. Luffy is our unofficial crewmate. Though, since the other two ask his opinion and sometimes defer to him on certain things, he's a little like an unofficial co-captain too."

A man, wearing a light maroon jacket over a dark green shirt with a white spade design on the front, raised and shook one of his fists as he growled out, "So give them back ya shitty pirates!"

The rest (excepting Zack) took up the cry as they readied their weapons.

Rubbing his forehead, Marco looked at the rowdy crew tiredly. "I'm afraid I can't do that yoi."

"Why not?" Silence followed this question as everyone turned to look at the cowboy hatted first mate. Glaring daggers up at the commander, Zack continued in the same cold and even tone, "Is it that you pirates can't or won't give them back?"

"We'll return the two troublemakers that attacked us this morning. Ace will be staying with us—"

"No!"

"You can't do that!"

"We refuse—"

"How dare you—"

"—can't split them up!"

"And why wouldn't you be returning Ace to us?" The first mate's question knifed through the cacophony of protests.

Marco met Zack's determined eyes with his own. "Pops—Captain Whitebeard—wishes to take Ace in as a member of our family yoi."

"Just for that. You are going to try and divide those three just for that?" Mutters of agreement and outrage met the tall gunman's words.

"Oi. What will happen if the 'Monster Trio' aren't a trio?"

"Nothing will happen 'cause we won't allow it to happen, you big lug!" The turban-wearer yelled as he smacked the larger's arm.

Zack walked up to where the First Commander was standing on the upper deck. Looking the other in the eye, he motioned to the cabin below them. "You and I need to have serious talk about what is going to happen between your crew and mine. If you say no, I'll sic these idiots on you and have them feed the bird-you to the Monster Trio as a 'welcome back' snack."

Marco raised an eyebrow at the threat but nodded his head in agreement. Still glaring, Zack gave a small, stiff nod back before turning and heading down the stairs. The commander followed in silence.

Pausing at the bottom of the steps, Zack raked his eyes over the rebellious crew. "And you lot! You are to keep following the Whitebeard ship. If I come back out and find you bunch of crazy idiots planning to storm the thing again…I'll cover you all in steak and set Luffy on ya!"

The phoenix was impressed by the speed at which everyone moved upon hearing this. He also caught traces of what looked like fear in the men's eyes.

Seeing the look on the visiting pirate's face Zack told him, "Got the idea from Sabo. Works like a charm." Marco shook his head in slight disbelief as he followed the shorter pirate through the cabin door.

* * *

Shortly after the First Division Commander left them Sabo and Luffy were visited by a new individual, who Luffy discovered was now responsible for watching them while the pineapple-head was away. A discreet sniff had the younger brother recalling that this was also one of the people who had tried to separate Ace from them towards the end of their morning rescue attempt. If he remembered correctly, this big dude had also been partially covered by a crystal-like material. Out of boredom, frustration, and spite (plus the incessant _crawling_ sensation spreading throughout his body that was making him very twitchy and cranky), Luffy dubbed their large watcher 'Sparkles'.

Once Luffy saw that the ship's deck was slowly clearing of people (most everyone were beginning to leave through a door towards the stern that lead below, likely heading to the galley since it was about lunchtime), he had woken his lightly sleeping brother and relayed what had transpired. Mentally of course. The two were also given some water by a grumbling Sparkles…after a rather grand debate between the brothers and poor Jozu over whether said drink was drugged or not. Luffy had assured Sabo that the man was sincere in his statement of the water being regular old water, but the two were still feeling vindictive towards the elder pirate over his part in Ace's recapture.

When Jozu moved a few yards away to the side of the mast where he could see both captives while sitting and polishing his sword, Sabo began thinking of ways out of their current predicament. More to the point, he thought of ways to help keep Lu from giving in to his need to Shift (asking revealed how unstable the younger was quickly becoming) while gaining a better idea of the situation with Ace. Luffy had only given Sabo a brief synopsis of his conversation with the commander and the blond wanted a more in-depth explanation. He also wanted to know about how Luffy performed during the first rescue attempt and who or what they should watch out for.

Running through a few ideas with Luffy, a vague outline of how they should proceed was gradually decided on. Luffy would distract the large guy watching them (who Luffy had already started annoying) until he was able to cut the ropes and slip away without being noticed. When the guard was further distracted by Luffy's disappearance, Sabo would make his getaway. Both brothers would then hide somewhere secure so that Luffy could partially Shift and buy them, hopefully, at least a few more hours before he gave in to the need to fully transform (the stress over the past week had been extremely hard on him). After that, they would try to make their way to Ace and check on him and try their hand at rescuing him (again). Sabo also stressed that Luffy had to continue keeping his Devil Fruit abilities hidden so that it would remain a trump card if things got dicey.

The blond brother sighed. ' _Though I doubt it will turn out anything like we hope it will…_ '

/So, we all clear on what the plan is?/ Sabo received a mental nudge of agreement from his younger brother. /Good. That guy… _Sparkles_ you said…How long until you completely distract him? /

/( _Smug Irritated Amused_ ) Not long now!/ A quick look about the deck (what they could see) confirmed to Luffy that now was a good time to finish things. There were only a few people left—who had all largely started ignoring the scene being made by the three at the mast—while the rest of the crew had disappeared below.

Sabo had the distinct feeling that, if he could right now, Luffy would be grinning like mad. Due to the performance he was currently putting on, though, such a sight would only alert their "babysitter" that something was up. As it was, the man (sporting a red face) was in a rather comical debate with Luffy over whether he was playing a game correctly.

"Would you stop it already!?" Luffy puffed out his slightly reddish cheeks, seemingly annoyed and upset.

"You're cheating! How else are you getting it right all the time?" Jozu's face turned another shade redder. This brat was really starting to get on his last nerve!

"I don't even remember agreeing to even play this stupid game with you!" Luffy reveled in the amusement he could feel coming from Sabo and the sheer frustration and confusion he could both sense and smell coming off in waves from the commander seated perpendicular to the brothers.

Taking a deep breath and opening his mouth wide, Luffy, terribly off-pitch, sang out, "Sparkles is cheating~ Sparkles' a cheater~ Spar—"

"IT'S _JOZU_ , NOT 'SPARKLES'!" Jozu emphasized his dislike of the imp's name for him by pounding a fist into the deck beside him. Face turning another half-shade darker red, and scrubbing it with both hands in a surge of frustration, he growled, "Where in the damn four Blues did you get that from!?" Sabo burst into a loud fit of laughter (he had tried to keep it in to hear what Lu would say next but the commander's reactions to Lu's taunts were too good).

"Because you were all glittery earlier. So you are 'Sparkles'!" Luffy gave the large commander a look that screamed 'duh' as he replied. After belting out a bark of laughter, a tiny nudge against his mind had Sabo trying to tone it down, again, to catch Luffy's next words. Cocking his head to the side, not even bothering to hide the smirk on his face, Luffy asked in a serious tone, "Why? You prefer 'Glitter' instead?" Hearing those words and seeing the look on the Whitebeard pirate's face had Sabo roaring anew.

Dumbstruck, the Diamond-Diamond Fruit user just stared at the grinning straw-hat brat and the top-hatted blond (who was trying to contain himself). Just as he was about to retort, Jozu caught himself and gripped his head in his hands as realization struck him. ' _I am arguing with a twelve-year-old…A damned_ child _…What am I doing!?'_

The horror-struck look on his face had both teens cracking up once again. Jozu ground his teeth, eyes narrowed at the small, grinning brat while one brow ridge gave a harsh couple of twitches.

"Ne ne! Big Cheater Sparkles, I just noticed something…Why are you wearing a skirt?" A large tick mark pulsed on the Third Commander's temple. It was official; he was going to kill Marco for saddling him with watching these two.

* * *

After that migraine of a morning which he had spent trying to catch the imp in front of him and then helping his siblings who had been tangled in the ship's rigging, Jozu had been ready for a nice visit to the _Moby Dick_ 's large training room. Marco had caught the large man on his way to said room, asking Jozu to watch their newest captives while he went to deal with something happening on the little ship that had been following them for the past week. He'd asked why the little imp and his buddy needed to be watched when they were already tied up to the mast, with copious amounts of thick rope, and in full view of everyone already. The lazy-eyed blond just muttered something about not trusting the straw-hatted brat or his accomplice, but mostly the brat, to simply sit still. Stupidly, Jozu had agreed to his brother's request.

When his bulky body walked up on-deck and moved to tower over the two prisoners (who were both awake and looking around), the little imp had glanced up at him with a blank expression. This quickly morphed into a look of what appeared to be shock (the top-hat wearing blond was alternating throwing glares at him and looking around some more) and Jozu thought that the kid finally had the sense to be intimidated by his large stature of almost twelve feet. Unfortunately, 'shock' wasn't quite the emotion the tiny brat was apparently experiencing he soon discovered.

"You're the ball-haired guy who was chasing me earlier!" Luffy's open-mouthed disbelief—seriously, they got _this guy_ watching them? He couldn't wait to start his part in Sabo's plan—turned into shit-eating, close eyed grin. "You know you make a great springboard?" Sabo tried, somewhat unsuccessfully, to muffle his chuckles at hearing this; he and Ace were definitely going to get an in-depth recount of that morning's events from their little brother.

Jozu scowled at the two before what the little imp said partially registered in his mind.

"I am NOT bald!" Luffy tilted his head a little to the side as he stared up at the giant man.

"Didn't say that." He grinned again. "But you do seem to be going deft!"

Sabo smirked. "You mean 'deaf'."

"Yeah, that! You must be really old if you are going deaf, Mister Ball-Hair!"

"I am Jozu, Third Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates! Not 'Mr. Ball-Hair'!" He walked a little ways off before sitting down, making sure that he had a view of both troublesome brats. Getting out his sword and polishing kit, Jozu glared at the two boys as he bit out, "And I'm not old you brats!"

Completely ignoring the man, Luffy exclaimed, "I'm thirsty!"

"Ah, now that I think about it, I am too."

Thrown off-balance at the abrupt subject change, and being ignored, Jozu took a couple seconds to get his bearings. "If you're thirsty, I can get you guys some water." He pointed over to a small collection of barrels stacked near the doors that lead below-deck.

"Cool! Can—"

"Wait a second. There's probably something wrong with them or they aren't water. Why else would they just be sitting there?" Luffy frowned at this.

"I'm not lying you brats! It's completely normal water, nothing wrong with it." Sabo shot a skeptic look between the barrels and older pirate.

"Probably 'completely normal' _salt_ water. Maybe used for pickling things or something." Luffy glanced from the barrels to the burly pirate and back to the barrels, indecision written across his face.

This big pirate didn't feel like a Bad person. Judging by the man's scent and what Luffy could passively glean from the other's mind without consciously trying, the other had been very honest in expressing his emotions and wasn't actively trying to hide something from them. However, Sabo's little tidbit about the water not being drinkable water made Luffy doubt himself a little. To try and confirm that the big, older pirate wasn't trying to deceive them Luffy paid extra close attention, sending out a tendril of his mind to barely brush the other's.

"Look you troublesome sea urchins…that over there, in those barrels, is completely normal, non-drugged, non-tampered, fresh water for people on this ship to drink!" Jozu panted lightly after his mini-tirade, switching his gaze back and forth between the two captives.

Luffy's prior indecision completely evaporated. "Ne…" Sabo turned his focus onto the younger brother. "It's fine. He's telling the truth." The Third didn't really want to admit it, but the little imp's stare was rather unsettling. It felt almost…heavy. Like a big, thick and heavy blanket covering him and pressing down all around, almost as if it were trying to squeeze him but never getting quite _that_ tight. ' _Marco did seem a little more…wary 'bout the younger one…_ '

Realizing that he had accidentally overlooked his brother's reactions to the conversation, Sabo was quick to reassure Luffy that he was only giving the guy a hard time to make it easier for them to work their plan later. Luffy leant back against the giant mast in relief that his brother hadn't doubted him, content to watch the elder brother rile up the enemy pirate.

Jozu did eventually manage to 'convince' the blond teen to drink the water and allow the smaller pirate some as well. He frowned upon noticing that, although he had said he was thirsty, the little imp didn't drink as much as the commander thought he should. The blond captive simply dismissed his concerns by stating that the younger hadn't been feeling well the past few days but was on the mend and would be better very soon.

' _Odd choice of words…He sounds very confident too. Does this happen often enough that there's a pattern or something?'_ Looking at the straw-hat brat, Jozu suddenly noticed that he did seem rather pale and his face had gaunt cast to it. The hat's shadow also disguised the dark bags under the kid's eyes. Though bound up with a ridiculous amount of rope, the bits of limb the commander _did_ see were kind of thin. Jozu filed away his observations to bring up later with Marco and his pops. Letting the issue go, for now, he returned to his earlier task of cleaning and polishing his sword.

"Ne." The commander set to work on cleaning his blade. "Ne!"

' _Just ignore him…'_

"Ne! Ne! Ne! Ne!" Jozu's brow twitched in irritation. "Ne ne ne ne ne ne ne ne ne—"

"WHAT!?" Red-faced, the older gave up on trying to ignore the irritating little imp and glared at the blank-faced kid.

"You know you don't have any eyebrows? Did they run away? Ace says that old people's hair either gets thick and grey or it starts to run away. Is your hair like that because you don't want it to run away like your eyebrows, Old Mister?" Sabo turned away from the man in a vain attempt to hide his snickering.

The blond brother remembered _that_ particular conversation when he and Ace had been trying to explain to Luffy how Humans age. The little dragon had been confused at first and was having difficulty making heads or tails of their explanation. In the end, the three had taken a trip through Grey Terminal and Goa City where the two older brothers pointed out actual examples to the younger child. At the time Luffy had ended up labelling the topic as just another odd thing about Humans. It was funny hearing him pulling that old memory out and using it against the Whitebeard Pirate.

Jozu just stared in confusion at the child seated away from him. ' _Is the imp really that big of an idiot or is he insulting me?'_ Hearing the muffled snickers of the blue-clad gentleman-looking pirate tied on the opposing side of the mast the large man was inclined to believe the latter, except the little imp had sounded truly curious and serious in his statement.

Luffy was having fun teasing the big pirate. It helped with his boredom, made Sabo feel better, and distracted him from the constant itch buzzing under his skin, the urge to Shift getting stronger as time went past. He tried to mask his fidgeting, rubbing arms tied behind his back against the wooden pole he was bound to in a futile effort to relieve the itch. Peeved at the expected failure, he gazed at the enemy pirate while trying to think of a way to advance Sabo's plan while also curbing his growing aggravation. The dragon grinned as inspiration struck him.

/( _Amused Annoyed Amused_ ) Sabo, play along. This is going to be a fun game!/

/( _Curious Amused Concern_ ) Okay. How are you holding up?/

/( _Tired Restless Tight_ ) When we get away and find someplace, think can still manage a small change without being too tempted to fully Shift. Needs to be soon though, can't hold off too much longer./

Sabo sent his baby brother some feelings of calm and support, trying to support the younger and soothe some of the stress the other was experiencing (and had been since Whitebeard had confronted them on that damn island followed by taking their Ace). /Ready when you are, Lu./

Hiding his mischievous smile in the shadow of his precious straw-hat, Luffy quickly schooled his features into that of a blank and slightly dopey look. Raising his head, he scrutinized the area around him before looking up and smiling.

"S!" Understanding dawned on Sabo and he quickly latched on to Luffy's lead.

Groaning as if he were exasperated, Sabo whined, "Not now, I'm tired and would rather prefer a nap to playing a game you will lose. Again."

Pouting, Luffy snipped, "That's 'cause you and Ace cheat!"

Sabo gave a big yawn while replying, "No. You're just that bad, I'm afraid. Sorry!"

"Please! I'll show you! I'll win this time!"

"You mean like you were going to last time? Or perhaps the time before that? Oh, what about the one before that?"

"I really will do it! Come on. Plea—"

"Look kid, he said 'no'. Alright? So just drop and sit there quietly." Luffy and Sabo hid matching grins. Trust Luffy to pull out an idea like this.

"Hey Mr. Old Guy!—" "It's Jozu, dammit! I'm not old." "Play with me!"

"I refuse. Shut up."

Luffy internally frowned as the large man kept working on cleaning his blade. Looks like things needed to be stepped up a notch, he didn't want to sit here any longer than he had to if he couldn't get a nice distraction and some fun from this Human. He really wanted to Shift and get rid of the tightness of his Human form. He really wanted to feel his scales. ' _Time to get this wind blowing!'_

Deep breath in and…

"Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease—"

Jozu just stared at the kid wondering when he was going to run out of breath.

"—pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease—"

"He's not going to stop until you say 'yes' to him." The commander turned his eyes to the resigned face of the other captive. "Just save us both the headache and accept. From experience, I can assure you that he can keep this up for hours…and it will only get worse. Trust me." That thought…was little scary Jozu decided.

"Pleeeeeeaaaaaaaasssssssssse!"

"FINE! Alright!? Fine! I'll play a game with you. Just stop already!" Luffy directed a beaming smile at the commander.

Sabo gave a mental high-five to Luffy. ' _Let the game begin!'_

 **BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK**

 _"Ne ne! Big Cheater Sparkles, I just noticed something…Why are you wearing a skirt?" A large tick(*) mark pulsed on the Third Commander's temple. It was official; he was going to kill Marco for saddling him with watching these two._

Hearing Sabo's muffled chuckles he sent a glare at the kid before turning his gaze back onto the very annoying little devil wearing a straw hat. "I am NOT cheating and it's not a skir—"

Luffy, very obviously, looked around the deck before smiling and cutting Jozu off as he shouted, "R!"

"Damn it, listen to me when I'm talking!" Lu tried to keep the smile from turning into a smirk, and valiantly resisted the urge to laugh, as he looked at the irate pirate's face. It was becoming a nice bright red that spread to the ears.

"I said 'R', Sparkles!" A loud groan ending in a frustrated growl met the statement.

"My. Name. Is. NOT! SPARKLES! And it's 'rail'," Jozu ground out. There was a headache that was now evolving into a terrible migraine courtesy of the two menaces sitting before him. ' _Seriously, did I somehow offend a god in a previous life or something!?'_

"Liar! You're cheating, I know you are! How else are you able to guess right every time? Stupid Sparkles." The Third Division Commander swore he could feel a vein throbbing at the side of his temple.

"My name is JOZU! I am 'Diamond' Jozu, you little punk!" The straw-hat boy puffed his pink-dusted cheeks.

"Cheating _güżollsú_ ," he muttered to the large commander, a big scowl on his face. Luffy was having a very hard time not giving in to his need to Shift. The uncomfortably tight and itchy feeling of his Human skin was rapidly getting very hard to ignore, resulting in a very cranky dragon that really wanted to move the show along.

Ignoring the response of "It's _Jozu_!" from their babysitter, Sabo quickly reached out to take stock of his little brother's condition. /( _Worry Concern_ ) How you doing, Lu? You don't ever really call others that, though it sounded somewhat different…/

Barely listening to the frustrated tirade of why the big Human _wasn't_ a cheater, Luffy tried to control his inner turmoil and prevent too much from leaking through their mental connection. He didn't want Sabo to worry even more over him when they still had to get to Ace. /( _Uncomfortable Restless Amused Irritated Tense_ ) Get Sparkles to go stand in front of you./

Shrugging the shoulder Jozu couldn't see, Sabo turned his head so he could face the pirate. "Hey, mister 'I'm not Sparkles', why don't you stand over here by me?"

Groaning and suddenly feeling very tired (the pounding headache wasn't helping him either), Jozu glared at the other troublemaker addressing him and asked, " _Why_ would I do that?"

"Because _he_ ," Sabo bobbed his head to gesture behind him, "won't drop it and, entertaining as it is to watch a grown man argue with someone a couple decades younger than him, even _I_ am getting tired of you two arguing." Jozu raised a brow-ridge. "At least if you stand here then it will be harder to tell what he picks, though he has chosen just about everything in sight. At least this way, if you still get it right he can't accuse you of cheating." He punctuated the last part with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders.

"Oh fine, whatever. I'll do it your way, troublemaker. If it shuts the kid up I'll give it a try."

Watching the big guy get up and lumber over to stand in front of him, Sabo had to wonder at the effect Luffy seemed to have on people. He was pretty sure that the commander would normally never do this (i.e. take his eyes off someone he was told to guard) or become so unfocused that he would forget what his original job was (aka babysit the captives). Sabo marveled at how Luffy could wrap others up in whatever pace the younger set, making them dance to any tune he desired. However smart Luffy was, the blond didn't think his little brother to be completely aware of this tendency, or at least the extent of it.

Sabo shared his amusement at how well Luffy had wrapped Jozu around his little fingers, eliciting a pleased hum in the back of his mind from the dragon. Luffy liked making his older brothers happy, so Sabo was glad that doing this helped to ease some of the younger's growing tension.

"Okay you little twerp. Can't see ya now so go and pick something."

After having Sabo mentally confirm this, Luffy quickly glanced around the deck while dropping the piece of rope that had bound his arms behind his back. He'd stretched his fingers and turned them into claws to start sawing at the rope slowly once the fire-chicken guy had left, finishing and then just holding them before Sparkles arrived to babysit. The few people who had still been wandering around the deck had moved toward the stern and out of sight. The cabin sitting at the top back there (where he figured the helm was) didn't have a very clear line-of-sight to the brothers' current location so they were good there. Eyeing the crow's nests above gave much the same story, though the center one above where they were would have the easiest time spotting them. Luckily, whoever was up there (Luffy was too tense and exhausted to effectively sense anyone beyond a five-yard radius) wasn't walking along the roost's edge and was likely sitting inside.

Making soft mumbles like he was trying to decide what to pick for the game, he carefully moved his arms from behind to his sides. Reforming his talons, Luffy silently and swiftly cut through the ropes binding him to the mast. Taking care to make sure they didn't slack too much so Sparkles wouldn't become suspicious, he deftly knotted the ropes together to hold them in place. With that done, and smirking at hearing annoyed grumbles coming from the enemy pirate about how long he was taking, Luffy placed his clawed hands on the wooden pole. Giving a mischievous chuckle he shouted, "R!"

Then Luffy's presence all but completely vanished.

* * *

Jozu gave a tired sigh before answering with, "It's 'rail' again isn't it?"

Silence.

"Brat? What's wrong, you upset that I _still_ got it right?"

More silence.

After a couple hours of constant noise coming from the little straw-hat wearing imp, Jozu was completely thrown by the sudden absence of the kid's voice. Confused, and missing the knowing grin spreading across the blond captive's face, the commander shifted to try and get a better look at where the other kid was tied.

And saw nothing. Shouldn't he be able to see a shoulder or something from this angle?

With a growing sense of unease, Jozu circled around the large mast to stand where the younger brat had been tied up. He saw the base of the wooden mast. He saw the ropes. He saw no kid with a red-ribboned straw-hat.

What?

A glancing search of the deck revealed nothing. No straw-hat brat. Same with a quick look up at the rigging. No grinning imp.

Denial at what was happening foremost in his thoughts, the poor Third Division Commander focused eyes full of disbelief on the spot where the little _had_ been moments ago. Closer inspection of the knotted ropes showed that something akin to a blade had sawed through them; the little fray present on the ends denoting the object used to be very sharp. ' _Didn't anyone check to make sure there were no weapons on the little imp? Or at least nothing that could be used to cut the rope?'_

As he went to stand up from his crouched position, Jozu spotted an odd set of marks on the mast a few feet up. Five small holes, relatively evenly spaced and making a shallow arch, stared back at him. Rising to his full height, his eye's spotted another set of marks. Only these were a mirror-image of the lower set. Brows furrowed in confusion, Jozu looked to see if there were any more up higher on the mast. The answer had him groaning in annoyed resignation.

Seriously, did he piss off a god (or gods) at some point recently? _Of course_ there were more. With his apparent shit-luck today, why _wouldn't_ there be?

There was a whole trail of them, spaced a little too far apart for a kid as tiny as the straw-hat brat, going about twenty feet up. At that height, the marks trail…around…the…

Spluttering a flurry of curses, the pirate raced back around to where the blond captive had been seated. The spot was glaringly void of any captive, blond or otherwise. The scene was a close match to the other side, only thing different was the lack of the odd puncture marks.

Belatedly, Jozu tried to sense for the two missing pirates using Observation Haki, muttering about why he hadn't thought to do this as soon as the little imp had gone all quiet. Unfortunately, for him at least, the search yielded nothing after several long minutes. Grumbling about how this was _not_ what he had had planned for the day and how Marco was going to pay for making him babysitter, the irate commander temporarily gave up searching for the troublesome duo using haki. With how wound up Jozu was at the moment, it was unlikely he'd be able to properly sense the two if they had learned how to mask their presence.

While attempting to calm himself down to try again, his eyes strayed to the spot where the gentleman-dressed blond had been bound. Slightly calmer now, he caught sight of an odd mark he hadn't noticed before. Realization of what the mark was had the commander's anger and frustration about the whole ordeal skyrocketing again: carved into the mast was a winking smiley-face sticking its tongue out at him with the word 'rope' underneath.

Diamond Jozu, admittedly, lost it.

Enraged shouts, curses and threats echoed up to the masts' lookouts, drawing concerned and confused looks to the steaming division commander pacing and ranting on the deck below. They watched as the very pissed man stalked towards the door leading below, throwing it open and slamming it behind him. Looking back below him, the pirate in the central lookout noticed that the two brats who'd caused a commotion that very morning (he'd also been one of those who the little straw-hat brat got tangled up in the rigging) had disappeared.

"Not agaaaaiiiiin!"

* * *

Sabo and Luffy, after escaping right under their babysitter's (or above his head in this case), had dashed across the deck before jumping over the ship's railing. Luffy, with Sabo clinging to his back and both hanging over the ocean below, used his transformed hands to keep a firm hold of the ship's outer wall as he carried them back towards the stern. Both hoped none of those stationed in the crow's nests above had seen them, so after several minutes of nobody looking over the edge for them they figured it had been a clean escape.

Wanting to check and see if they were far enough back that they could sneak into one of the rear doors that led below, Luffy stretched his neck up until he could see over the lip of ship's hull and onto the deck. He really hoped they were close. Normally he wouldn't have problem doing something like this while carrying _both_ his brothers. However, because of how stressful an ordeal the past week has been for him, Luffy was in no shape to be doing much of anything besides resting and eating (while cuddled up with his favorite brothers). Both arms were already shaking from the strain and he was diverting most of his concentration, plus what little spare energy he had, to draw in and suppress his presence. Sabo was doing the same and helping Luffy with maintaining his focus in his exhausted state.

Seeing that they had reached a point close to one of the doors, Luffy cautiously examined the area as he slowly had the rest of his body, Sabo latched tightly onto him, crawl up the ten-foot gap to the deck. Not seeing or hearing anyone, the dragon-boy tilted his head to look back at his brother from the corner of his eye while still keeping watch for anything deck-side. A nod from Sabo confirmed that he didn't sense anyone close-by.

Scurrying up over the railing, both boys booked it to the closest door once their feet touched down. Crouching by the door, the younger tried to listen and smell whether someone was behind it and the older used the barest amount of _kisú_ to sense for the same. Receiving a negative on both ends, they quietly slipped inside and began carefully looking for a place to hide out for a while. Both boys were extremely tired—Sabo had serious doubts he could get Luffy to relax enough to get any rest even if they did find a place—and Luffy needed somewhere secure so he could Shift to placate his nerves.

They didn't have long either. Luffy was splitting his attention between not manifesting any more of his other form's traits and hiding his aura. Though he'd been doing the former since waking up after their own capture, he'd begun the latter during the "game" with the Whitebeard Third Commander. Lu had devised the whole thing to distract the guard from noticing Luffy's presence slowly fading. Sabo had started the same process when his younger brother had informed him they were about ready to start the second phase of their escape plan. Unfortunately, due to his weakened and stressed state, this meant Luffy was rapidly burning through his already severely depleted reserves of energy. Paying too much focus on not transforming caused his concentration on suppressing his presence to falter and weaken, and vice-versa. After getting away from Mr. Sparkles, though, Luffy had prioritized staying hidden which meant slips in preventing Changing.

Sabo had noticed that with Luffy giving most of his meager energy to concentrating on hiding his presence he was subconsciously giving in to the desire to Shift. While clinging to Luffy as the younger ferried them along the outside of the _Moby Dick_ 's hull, he'd seen the pattern of scales, which had only manifested on the younger's hands, slowly spread halfway up to the elbow. Another check once they'd gotten inside revealed Luffy's arms to be almost completely covered and his feet slowly acquiring their own set of talons and scales.

' _We need to find somewhere to hide soon. Funny as it would be to see these bastards freak over a_ dragon _suddenly appearing on their ship, we aren't in any shape to defend ourselves._ '

* * *

Jozu had caused a huge scene when he came barreling into the large mess. Izou didn't think he'd ever seen that particular shade of red on his brother's face. The only time that came close, in his memory, was when Thatch had somehow dyed the other's hair an ugly yellow and purple combination (which took a few _long_ weeks for the "grumpy" commander to wash out). As Pops hadn't been feeling too well (though Strawhat Brat's stunt with tying their siblings up in the rigging _had_ lightened the man's mood) that day, he'd taken lunch in his room so he could rest and do paperwork. Meaning only Jozu's brothers and some sisters were witness to the flustered commander's ire.

Haruta had taken the initiative to ask what had gotten the older brother's "skirt in a knot" and only made the other even more ticked off (normally he didn't pay any mind to Haruta's teasing of his outfit).

Their brother then demanded that everyone cancel any plans they had made for the foreseeable future and help him search the ship. The "straw-hatted imp and 'blue gentleman' crewmate" had escaped. Those who had been participants in that eventful morning blanched as they immediately (barring the commanders) began shouting protests and begging that Jozu was only joking. Those who hadn't joined in, but heard of what transpired and helped in cleaning up the evidence, gave their own groans and protests (though not nearly as passionate as the former group).

After the commanders managed to quiet down their distressed brothers and sisters, they organized some search parties to scour the ship. Those who weren't part of the search were to continue their regular duties, but report back to one of the commanders if they found anything.

Hearing that Marco hadn't returned yet (with a few unsavory expletives thrown in by Jozu who was still unhappy about being appointed "babysitter") and that Jozu was experiencing difficulty using Observation Haki, the commanders decided to spread out over the entire ship. If they all searched physically and with haki, there was no way that the two boys would remain hidden for long

Haruta took some of his division to scour the little nooks and crannies he knew made good hiding places (keeping his favorite and mostly unknown ones for himself to search). Thatch, Rakuyo, Curiel and the nurses on break went back to the infirmary to guard Ace (Thatch had reminded everyone that the two escapees were after their captive captain) and notify the others of what had happened and to prepare themselves. Izou and Vista volunteered to try and find out just _how_ the two had escaped and see if they could find a trail to follow once they heard of the odd marks Jozu spotted. Kingdew took some of his division to search the upper levels of the ship while Blamenco did the same for the lower levels. Atmos and Blenheim selected some of their division to come help with searching the deck and rigging, and to keep watch should the two Spade Pirates reappear on-deck at some point. Fossa dragged a scowling Jozu off to inform Pops of what had happened. After that, Jozu would take some volunteers to search the ship's cabins and rooms; Fossa elected to stand guard at the helm with his own volunteers.

Jozu just hoped that they found the errant boys before Marco came back from visiting the Spades' ship. It was bad enough that the two managed to escape while under his watch. He shuddered to think of what would happen if they remained unfound when the stupid phoenix returned.

* * *

Vista and Izou were checking out the mast where that morning's intruders had been bound while their siblings raced about the ship looking for the two Spade Pirates.

Even with everyone, who could at least, participating in the search using haki none had managed to locate the missing captives. Izou had thought that Jozu, due to being one of the weaker commanders when it came to using Observation Haki, simply couldn't sense them because of how upset and frazzled he was. Upon trying for themselves, the cross-dresser and his brother were both a little disconcerted at not being able to use haki as an easy means of finding the troublemaking duo either.

They saw the "odd marks" Jozu had mentioned, along with the small picture and (to them) random word beneath it that hadn't been. The carved face made both laugh at the thought of Jozu's reaction when he saw it. Vista remarked that they needed to ask their brother about what the word meant later too. Izou smiled as he nodded in agreement.

Returning their focus to the more relevant evidence before them, the commanders examined what they had found.

Looking at the ropes which had bound the two captives, Vista came to a similar conclusion as Jozu. He only wondered where they two had gotten such a sharp tool as the two had been checked by him for any weapons (even though the younger hadn't used any during his wild rampage about the ship it didn't mean he didn't have any), with the older one's pipe being the only thing confiscated. Anything as sharp as what had the cut the thick ropes shouldn't have escaped his notice. The object would also likely have been the size of at least a small penknife, at least an inch or two long, to make such a clean cut with little evidence of needing to saw against the bindings. But, again, he'd checked both kids and had found only the one. So where did the object come from?

Izou was in a similar state as he examined the odd puncture marks trailing up the mast. The first set occurred at about his height (around six feet off the ground) with rest appearing every six or so feet up. Around twenty feet up the trail circled around the side of the mast before disappearing on the other side. The holes weren't very deep and the outside rim of each were almost as big around as one of his bullets. The shape made by the five marks and how the sets mirrored each other seemed familiar to Izou but he couldn't place exactly why. Looking at a crouched Vista, who was fingering a piece of cut rope, the geisha-man paused as clarity struck him. Turning back to the marks he put his right hand up to the first set…and stared.

"Oi, come look at this." Vista looked over at his brother's puzzled but serious face, taking in how the other's hand laid against the mast. Curiosity piqued, he obliged.

"What?" Izou nodded at the way his hand covered the mast, fingers curled in slightly.

"What did you find about the ropes?"

"Whatever cut them had been sharp but really small. Maybe a blade of some sort. Though I don't know how they managed to hide it, I checked both kids myself. Only the older had a weapon and it was a pipe."

"So you didn't find anything on the younger?" Vista gave a curious look at his brother. Where was he going with this?

"That's right. Why? You think he had somehow hidden something?" Izou's look turned contemplative as he kept staring at the spot where his hand on the mast's wood.

"I think…" he started slowly, removing his hand and gesturing for Vista to look, "that the rambunctious 'imp' might have a few tricks up his nonexistent sleeves."

* * *

Sabo and Luffy had managed to find a small nook hidden in the back of rarely used storage closet (if the layer of dust was anything to go by). Luffy gave the spot the 'okay' as he didn't catch any scent to indicate someone had recently (or ever) been there. With a small, narrow entrance partially hidden in the closet's corner, their little hideaway was just big enough to fit both Sabo and Luffy in one of his hybrid forms. Just to be safe, Sabo had removed one of the storage room's larger shelves that had some miscellaneous items stored on it (blankets, some tins of polish, etc.) and moved it in front of the nook's entrance to better camouflage their spot. To help his brother be more comfortable, Sabo grabbed a couple blankets off one of the other shelves and placed them in the hiding spot.

Luffy kept guard while he waited for Sabo to finish the preparations. Already he could hear the commotion stirred up from, what he correctly assumed to be, the discovery of the brothers' disappearance. He really wished he could have seen Sparkles' face when the big man had seen their departing message.

A shoulder tap from Sabo had him following the blond away from the door and into closet's hidden nook. Sabo motioned for him to take the back-most area while the older stayed towards the entrance, placing the shelf he'd selected before seating himself to stand guard over his baby brother. Seeing the blankets, Luffy sent a wave of gratitude to Sabo before proceeding to make a meager nest from them.

Sabo had noticed Luffy's body shake with little tremors for the last several minutes they'd been, quietly, roaming about looking for somewhere to hole up. Seeing how pale and exhausted the little dragon was becoming had been very worrying for Sabo, especially when the younger's scales had started to coat his chest and back at varying rates. Fighting against the need to Shift and maintaining the suppression of his presence was swiftly becoming too much of a burden for Luffy.

So Sabo was extremely grateful when they had checked this room after Luffy mentioned the heavy scent of dust coming from it. There was no light except for what came in from the hallway but that didn't matter much. Luffy had heightened senses and if he couldn't see because of how dark it was (though Sabo figured he probably could see at least dim shapes with the small bit of light from the crack between the floor and closet door), the other senses would compensate for the deficiency. Sabo's (and also Ace's) own senses were better than a normal Human's thanks to receiving their little brother's blood, but they didn't hold a candle to Luffy's.

Said brother had finished making a passable nest and had already finished Shifting into a wingless hybrid form (the cranny they had hidden themselves in was too cramped to comfortably have his wings out), laying curled up in the blankets with his back touching Sabo's. Luffy's entire body was now covered in scales, both hands and feet sporting talons, with his tail tucked firmly around him. His head sported smaller versions of his dragon-form's horns, eyes a little more slanted and (though he couldn't see them) amber in color, and his ears had become a little more pointed towards the ends and fused a bit more with his head. Black hair had become a short mane running from his head to the tip of his tail, completing the look.

After a few minutes of dozing, and calming himself down some more so that he didn't fully transform, Luffy gave a tired nudge to Sabo's back. Sabo complied with the silent request and lifted one of his hands to settle on Luffy's head, placing it on the younger's forehead right before the small horns. With the direct contact, Luffy wouldn't have to concentrate on forming concrete and ordered thoughts to send to his brother. Instead, he could let the information he wished to share trickle slowly into the other's mind as he rested. The act also gave Sabo permission to sift through Luffy's recent memories if he wanted to know more as well, so long as he didn't try to actively pry anything that Luffy didn't want to share.

In this way, while keeping watch, Sabo learned of the morning's events from Luffy's perspective. He mentally applauded his brother for managing to rile the crew so much during his diversionary exploits, feeling Luffy's pleased hum thrumming against his back. When he reached the part where Whitebeard had confronted them he felt Luffy's humming stop and hesitation mixed with worry echoing across their connection. Sabo was quick to reassure Luffy that he'd done nothing wrong in letting out his _válraas_ because even Sabo had been angry with Whitebeard's claim of not returning Ace. Luffy had been wrung out emotionally and physically so it was only natural that the younger react in such an instinctive way towards the stronger captain's threat. While these impressions mollified the younger, Luffy still shared his worry over being discovered because of the slip; Sabo soothed his brother back into a more restful state, knowing that Luffy was more concerned over the older two's well-being versus his own should Luffy's true nature be revealed.

Continuing on, Sabo glanced over the time when Luffy had awoken, more interested in if anything had happened after he'd taken his (admittedly less than restful, but still needed) nap. That is when Luffy's conversation with Marco popped up.

Going over the memory (with Luffy so tired it was hard to get a concrete account of the exchange, so he decided to ask Luffy more about it later) Sabo was a little surprised at what had transpired. From what he could tell of the slightly fuzzy memory, Luffy had been very observant and aware of the commander. He had even declared the man to be a 'Good Human' and, though still obviously upset over the man and his crew's actions, had actually given these pirates _permission_ to try and recruit Ace (even if it was stated as a challenge Sabo knew Luffy's declaration for what it truly was). Luffy directed Sabo's attention to his brief examinations of those he encountered with strong auras while running about earlier and his opinion of them, followed with the impression he got from Mr. Sparkles. Though only Sparkles had gotten a clear 'Good Human', the others Luffy had encountered had very likeable auras and, if he could get a proper read, would likely classify them as 'Good Humans' too. An old memory of Shanks was pushed forward for Sabo to see, with Red-Hair telling a younger Luffy that a "captain's crew is a direct reflection of the captain's self".

/( _Tired_ ) Still want to meet Captain…/

/Didn't you already meet him? Twice?/

/( _Miffed Tired_ ) Distracted…Upset…Wasn't clear…Want to check again…/

/Alright, alright. We'll nab Ace and go from there. Get some rest. Going to need it./

Mindful of the horns, Sabo started to rub the top of Lu's head. He smiled as Luffy started humming again; feeling soothed and loving the physical contact his precious big brother was providing him, Luffy resettled to try and get at least some rest.

* * *

Flying back to the _Moby Dick_ , Marco was thinking over what he had learned from his visit with the Spade Pirates. He needed to share this new information with Pops and the other commanders as soon as he got back. Preferably before anything else chaotic happened; which, according to the crew Marco had spoken to, was very likely where _those_ three were concerned.

The amount of activity he saw on the ship's deck had Marco beating his wings to reach home faster, apprehension filling his gut. ' _I wasn't even gone two hours yoi! How did something happen already?'_

Back-winging once he was above the ship, he waited until he was only a dozen feet up before transforming back and dropped the remaining distance. Only a few of his brothers paused in their activity to welcome him back, the rest either hadn't noticed or decided to keep their focus on whatever they were doing. With his enhanced sight (perks of being a bird-zoan), Marco had spotted the likely cause of crew's hectic bustle about the ship while in the air.

Flaring his haki to get his family's attention, he resignedly turned to the nearest person and asked, "What happened yoi?"

"The two intruders from this morning…escaped." Marco lowered his head and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I figured that's what happened." Sighing, the blond picked out three of his brothers, "Go tell the other Division Commanders that there is going to be a meeting held in Pops' room and they are to come _now_ , yoi." Sending them off, he flared his haki again to let his fellow commanders know he was looking for them. "The rest of you…Just continue with what you were doing. If you do find the two brats then come tell us immediately. Don't engage them yoi."

With that said, the crew went back to their search and Marco left to go find his captain and father.

* * *

The commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates were all squished into their father's room, with their beloved Captain and Father seated on his bed against the far wall of the cabin.

"Why did you call this meeting, son?"

"I'll get to that in a minute." Turning his head, Marco locked eyes onto a large man who was trying, and failing, to hide himself behind a couple of his brothers. "First, I thought I told you to watch them, Jozu. How did they get away yoi?"

Jozu, with red-tinted cheeks, shuffled his feet as he muttered something under his breath. Marco only caught the words "annoying imp" and "laughing trickster" and "stupid bird".

"What?" Jozu glared up at him.

Sighing, the diamond-man looked at his brothers and father before announcing, "I got forced into playing a damn game with the stupid, annoying imp and then tricked by his damn blue crewmate." Marco twitched his lips. Thatch and Haruta were bent over laughing, the others merely chuckling or smiling in amusement.

Whitebeard raised an eyebrow at Jozu. "Just how were you forced and tricked, my son?"

Deciding to get the humiliating topic over and done with, Jozu let everything come spilling out. "The little straw-hatted imp wouldn't stop bugging me about playing a game with him because his partner refused to play. The damn blond kid told me the runt wouldn't stop until I agreed and could very easily keep bugging me until I either left or broke down. We played a stupid word game for a while until the brat got frustrated that I was winning every round, which was when he started accusing me of cheating. After several minutes of listening to the brat ranting about _that_ , the blond kid suggested that I stand in front of him and do another round. If I won then the brat would shut up, if I lost then the brat would still shut up." Here Jozu paused, a puzzled look and a scowl etching themselves onto his red-cheeked face.

Izou and Vista felt they knew what had happened and waited to see if their brother could give them any more clues to add to their theories.

Marco gestured for the division commander to continue his story.

"Well, after an hour of listening to this kid babble and whine nonstop, the brat suddenly went silent after giving me a clue to what the word he picked was. I went around to check and see if he was fine and just finally fell asleep or something, but he wasn't there. The ropes had been cut and tied together and when I looked up there were some odd marks going up the mast. Went to check on the blue-dressed brat. He'd vanished as well and his ropes were cut and tied like the imp's. Tried to use Observation Haki to find them but it was like they disappeared off the ship." Jozu erased the look of puzzlement and glared at his brothers. "By the way, which idiot tied those brats up without checking to make sure they didn't have any weapons?"

"I _did_ check them!" Everyone turned to look at Vista. "The older boy only had a pipe on him; checked the younger child, too, for one even though he hadn't used any during their assault. Boy was clean. Had nothing on him, unless he had magically hidden it."

Thatch slowly ceased his laughter from listening to Jozu's misfortune. Standing up straight, but still smiling, he asked, "Then how did the two cut the ropes and escape?"

Izou answered at this point. "We," he gestured between him and Vista, "think that the straw-hat child might be a Devil Fruit user." Haruta looked stunned.

"That tiny shrimp? You seriously think he has an ability?"

Nodding, Izou folded his arms in his purple and pink kimono before continuing, "Vista said that neither had any weapons or sharp objects on them when they were tied up. Also, there were the 'odd marks' our dear brother mentioned earlier. They only go up the side where the smaller kid was seated and then go up a ways before circling around to directly above where his older partner was. The brat's ropes were also cut by the same object and not two different ones."

"Why does this point to a Devil Fruit power?" Izou turned to Fossa.

"Because, whatever made those holes was also the thing that cut the ropes. The smaller boy is either a Paramecia or Zoan. I am leaning more towards him being Zoan."

Marco glanced up at his father to see what the old man was making of all this. He looked interested but also a little worried. The phoenix couldn't blame him. What if the boy had fallen overboard earlier when he and the older tried to escape? Or this morning when the child had been jumping and darting about? Marco distinctly remembered a few times the brat had run along the ship's side-railing and he'd seen the boy stumble or falter occasionally. If he had fallen in then they might not have noticed the danger until it was too late to save him!

"Why do you say he is probably a Zoan-based user?"

"Yeah, aren't there a lot of Paramecia-types that would grant the same ability?"

Izou scoffed at Rakuyo and Thatch's questions. "You were there this morning and were one of those chasing him! Also, don't you remember when we cornered them how the little one kept _growling_ at us?"

"Izou, if you are right that he is a Zoan-type then it is very likely his animal-base is that of a type of carnivore, yoi." Haruta looked at his older brother.

"What makes you think that?"

"Whatever he is has sharp and probably large claws. That rope was very thick and there is little evidence of it being sawed through. What the kid used to get through them had to have been at least an inch or two long to do that."

Izou picked up after Vista. "Claws also make sense because of the marks made on the mast. Their span matches that of a small hand and the way they alternate looks like someone crawled up it. The indentations didn't make sense until I figured that out and thought the kid turned his hands into claws or something similar."

"But lots of animals have claws. Why should he be a carnivore-type?" Blemenco was worried. Carnivore-type zoans were tricky to deal and having a troublesome brat like the little straw-hat kid running loose (and possibly being one) was concerning.

"Because of how aggressive he is yoi." Everyone stilled at this.

Whitebeard's thoughtful eyes focused down on his First's tense form. "What have you learned?"

"Oh yeah, you went over to their ship. What'd they say?" Marco a quick, though still tense, mild smirk at Curiel.

"I'll get to that in a minute, it's mostly the reason I asked for this meeting. Before that, I mentioned the little energetic brat to be aggressive." Everyone nodded at this. "Well, it's normal for Zoans to display some aggression due to the influence of their animal counter-parts, yoi. The main difference is that carnivore-types tend to possess more aggressive natures than herbivore- or bird-types." He paused and looked at his brothers.

Haruta and Rakuyo still seemed unsure. Thatch, Izou and Vista looked like they agreed with his assessment. Curiel and Blemenco appeared worried over this news. The others and Pops simply waited for him to continue.

"Even if we took his captain and he became defensive and wished to retaliate, herbivores would generally be more timid about taking on such a strong group. When we first saw the kid, back on that island where we 'picked up' Ace, the brat almost immediately became hostile towards us. Then this morning when he was running about the ship there was a general air of hostility about him. Like he wished to attack but didn't yoi."

"You think the other one told him not to?" Blenheim asked.

"If he was just to be a distraction then it would make sense that the other forbade him from any direct conflict. Too big a chance he'd be caught," Vista answered.

Haruta still wasn't sold on the idea a kid _that_ young was a Fruit-user, let alone a rare carnivore-type Zoan. "But if he had an ability, why didn't he use it against us when we were chasing him around? Wouldn't it have made it easier to keep away from us?"

"Probably the same reason we think the older one might have specified not to attack us directly. It _would_ make for a surprising trump card," Blemenco replied.

"Kid was also pretty strong and quick for one his size. Actually managed to knock out at least a few of those chasing him with only a punch or kick." Vista turned to the diamond Fruit-user. "Didn't you say he stopped you with a kick before the blond 'gentleman' smacked you?"

Jozu nodded. "Yeah took me off-guard, I didn't expect him to be able to do that because of how small he is."

"Right, yoi," Marco interrupted, he wanted to finish with this and get onto the part he really needed to discuss with his family. "Back to what I said before, he is very aggressive. When Pops confronted the boys this morning any herbivore-type would've hesitated, even just a little, in the face of Pops' power. This kid didn't, his reaction just got stronger yoi. I also caught an odd scent from him and my phoenix became a little unsettled from it." Whitebeard narrowed his eye at this piece of information.

"I suppose you mean to tell us that whatever his animal-base may be, it is very strong. Am I right?"

Marco crossed his arms and nodded to confirm his father's theory. This revelation made all the commanders in the room very nervous. What animal could make a _phoenix_ , a creature of legend, uneasy?

"What else did you wish to say? I don't suppose this was the reason you took us all away from catching those two troublemakers." Marco grinned in response to Izou's question.

"Is this where we get to the part where we learn about your trip to that crazy ship with its crazy crew?" Haruta and Thatch sent puzzled looks at Curiel.

"Yes, yoi." Squaring his shoulders, the phoenix looked his father-figure in the eye and stated, "We can't adopt Ace."

Silence.

Whitebeard stared his eldest son in the eye, seeking a reason as to why the younger man felt this way.

"What are you talking about, Bird-Brain? The Old Man's wanted to make Ace one of us for a while now. Why do you say he can't all of a sudden?"

Marco ignored Thatch's outburst and the confused expressions of his family. Keeping his eyes locked on his father's, he waited.

Whitebeard moved his giant frame to lean against the wall behind him, crossing his arms as he did so. "Go on."

Marco breathed out slowly, taking a few moments to order his thoughts. "Our information about Ace and his crew is faulty yoi. Curiel, the reason the Spades were acting weird was because we unknowingly captured all three of their highest-ranked members; which they consider their captains and leaders."

"...You mean to tell us…those pirates have _three_ captains commanding their ship? That's absurd! How does that even work?" Haruta paused in his rant as a thought struck him. "Wait! You mean to say that little straw-hat wearing brat is a _captain_!?"

Everyone was a little gobsmacked at this news. Seriously, who'd ever heard of a pirate crew run by three captains? Especially with one as small as the Spade Pirates were.

"But doesn't this mean that even if we take Ace those guys will still have two captains? It's not like they are lacking a leader." Rakuyo and Blemenco nodded in agreement with Kingdew.

"I asked the same of their first mate, man called Zack." He looked over to Curiel and smirked. "He's the guy you referred to as the 'cowboy hat navigator' yoi." Addressing the rest of his brothers and father, Marco continued, "The man threatened to get a seastone net they had below and truss me up to be used as a 'welcome back chicken dinner' for their captains." Thatch, Haruta and Izou busted up laughing when they heard this. Even Whitebeard looked a little amused by the threat against his son.

"But I thought we found that the crew wasn't particularly close to Ace. Why would they have such a problem with us taking him away?"

Marco sighed before he answered Fossa. "They aren't. None of the crew is very close to their two captains—"

"You said we had _all three_ of their captains. Why are you suddenly saying there's only two?"

"I'm getting there Haruta. Be patient yoi. As I was saying, the crew isn't very close to their captains. The only one they have a real connection with is the youngest—Luffy they call him—and even then there is still a large gap between them. Zack told me that Ace was co-captain with Sabo—the blond dressed like some kind of gentleman—and the crew hold Luffy as an unofficial captain yoi."

"That irritating imp looks to hardly even be beyond twelve years. Why would he be seen as a captain?"

"I asked that too. Turns out that the gentleman and hothead consult the straw-hat kid fairly often in regards to plans of where they go or what they do. It's mainly why the crew sees him as a third captain yoi."

"So why do they not wish to part with Ace, my son?"

" _That_ is why I called for this meeting yoi." Sky-blue eyes locked with the others present in the room. "The first mate of the Spade Pirates has issued us an ultimatum: either we agree to take in all three captains and the Spades join with our ranks, or we refuse and have a huge fight against a 'crew of crazy idiots captained by crazy monsters'. A basic all or none deal."

Thatch zeroed in on that last word, thoughts going back to the strange tattoo he'd seen and dimly recognized on the fire-user's chest. "You say 'monsters'?"

Marco smirked, a spark of laughter in his blue eyes. "Apparently, the Spade Pirates call their three leaders the 'Monster Trio' yoi."

Whitebeard had glanced over at the Fourth Division Commander when he'd asked that question. "Something on your mind Thatch?"

"Well, I might be going out on limb here but…Marco, am I right to assume that the main problem isn't so much about splitting up the Spade _crew_ but the Spade _captains_?"

A confused Blenheim asked, "Isn't that what he just said?"

"Not necessarily," Izou said. "Marco's phrasing implied that everything would be fine so long as the whole Spade Pirate crew joined us. Thatch is implying this isn't the case, and that even if we did take the whole crew there could still be problems."

"I expected as much when I first heard of young Ace and how he was distant from his crew. From what we gathered, the brat was very protective of them but wasn't emotionally close to them. I also felt, and still do, that for Ace to accept us as a family he would need to be isolated from his old crew. There is something buried in the brat's heart and for him to heal this would be the best method of action for us to take."

"He's right Pops." Whitebeard turned to Marco, who was frowning and glaring down at the floor. "Thatch is right. The Spades were absolutely adamant that we couldn't split the three troublesome brats up. They didn't mind the crew being disbanded and shuffled into our ranks; but no matter what, we had to keep those three together yoi."

Fossa stared at the blond commander. "Why is it so bad if we split them up? The Old Man says the best way for Ace to 'heal' would be to separate him from everyone on his crew. That would include the other two captains wouldn't it?"

"That might be the one thing which would sink any attempt we made to get Ace to join us." Marco eyes rose to meet Thatch's hazel ones.

"You know something yoi?"

The pompadour man absently scratched at his bearded chin. "Maybe. You know how I joined you guys a couple years ago when you picked me up in Paradise?"

Atmos spoke up for the first time, "What of it?"

"Well, before I joined I travelled around a lot because of…things…Anyway, on one of the islands I had stopped at I overheard some people who were talking about a 'small band of youngsters playing pirate' and causing trouble. A few members from another visiting crew heard them and butted in to say that they had heard of the same group, except that it was made of only 'three little monsters' and not kids." Thatch paused to take a deep breath. "This was a fairly active port that had a lot of people visiting it at all times, so this conversation I was listening to got pretty lively, and fast, when other people passing by got wind of what was being said. What I got from everything thrown in, was that there were three kids who everyone called 'The Demon Trio' but hardly anyone ever actually saw what they looked like. They called them 'kids' only because they sounded young. These kids would hop from island to island, generally staying away from people, while attacking crews and ships that came too close to wherever they were. They almost exclusively attacked at night and referred to each other by letters, never using names while around others."

Fossa stared at his brother. "You never thought to look for these kids or tell us about them when we found you?"

Thatch gave a half-hearted shrug, guilt ringing in his voice as he replied, "Back then, I didn't give a damn about anyone else; only cared about myself. It was a few months before I ran into Pops and you guys and by then I'd forgotten about them. Plus, you think nobody searched for them? Lots of pirates, bounty hunters, and even some Marines were after those kids for the shit they were accused of pulling. They earned the nickname of 'Demon Trio' for a reason. Yet even with so many searching no one ever found them."

"What makes you so sure those three are the same as these 'demon' kids you heard about? They might not have survived until now, they were young and Paradise isn't a kind place to kids pretending to be pirates." Izou hoped those kids survived, but he wasn't sold on the idea that _these_ Spade Pirates were the same three Thatch spoke of.

"Did their crew tell you _why_ they were so against splitting up those three Marco?" The phoenix looked up at Atmos.

"No, they didn't yoi. Just that those three had always been together and whenever someone in the past tried to take one of them away, Zack said the other two had 'a very negative reaction'. He said they were extremely protective of one another and he would hate to be the person stupid enough to try and separate them, yoi."

"But they didn't give an exact reason as to why they didn't want Ace and the other two cheeky brats separated?"

Marco shifted his gaze to meet his father's curious yellow eyes, traces of unease and confusion swirling in his own. "No. Zack told me the only reason he said anything at all was out of concern for the straw-hat kid's health and because that same kid gave us…'permission' I think he said…to try and include Ace in our family yoi."

Thatch could see glints of humor and puzzlement in their father's eyes, though it was swamped by the wide grin on the giant man's face.

"What did he mean by 'permission'?" Haruta asked his older brother.

The blond bird-zoan was really ready for this conversation to be done with. He had brats to re-find and lots of paperwork to do. Holding in a sigh, he answered the question his littlest brother had asked for everyone. "Before I went over to their ship, I saw that the 'little imp', as Jozu calls him, had woken up and wanted to talk to him. See if I could persuade him to give up the idea coming after his captain yoi." He re-folded his arms and shifted to lean more on one leg. "We got to talking and I told him we had been looking into the hothead because we wanted him to join our crew. Said what we had found before the kid interrupted me and said I wasn't answering his question. Kid gave me an…the only way I can think to describe it is an odd, heavy look…So I told him that Pops wanted to make Ace one of his sons and that we would accept him as our brother, yoi."

Whitebeard frowned slightly as he watched his eldest child fidget as he told them of this encounter. Something about the child had obviously unsettled his normally unflappable First Commander (he didn't count Haruta and Thatch's pranks as that was normal family fun). If they did keep all three together, he would make sure to keep a close eye on the child.

"Right as I was about to leave, the little brat gave me the biggest, mocking grin I'd ever seen on someone's face as he wished us luck on 'getting Ace to call us family'. It was weird because his voice sounded very serious for such a young kid yoi." The blond gave a slight shrug before saying, "I told Zack this when he took me aside to talk privately and he'd asked about the condition of his captains and what they were doing."

Their father settled his eyes on Thatch. "Do you still think these are the same brats as those you heard about a couple years ago?"

Looking around at his siblings' curious expressions, Thatch heaved a tired sigh before meeting his father-figure's comforting gaze. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure," he nodded.

Whitebeard raised an eyebrow as he questioned, "And why are you so certain they are one in the same?"

"Well," Thatch nervously rubbed his hand on the back of his neck, "when we first brought Ace in I noticed he had something dark on his chest. I had a closer look and saw that it was a tattoo. Didn't think anything of it at first, but for some reason it bugged me. I had another look at it earlier this morning after the bruising and cuts healed enough to get a better view of it. Still couldn't remember why the thing bugged me but it had seemed familiar." He waved a hand in Marco's direction, "When Birdbrain mentioned the crew's nickname for their captains it finally clicked."

"Quit holding us in suspense and just tell us already you oaf!"

"Jeez, Izou, lighten up. I was getting to that! Anyway, the reason Ace's tattoo seemed familiar was because it had the same letters marked on it as the ones those 'Demon Trio' kids were said to have called each other. If Marco was told the actual names of the other two Spade Pirates we have aboard, then the initials of their first names also match up exactly."

"Seriously, those kids were called A, S and L?" Thatch nodded at Vista. "Huh. What were the chances of that?"

"They might not be the same people, could still be a coincidence yoi," Marco said, looking around at his brothers. "Thatch I assume you are going back to the infirmary. When you get there I need you to send Bay up here to see me and Pops. Everyone else can go back to looking for the two troublemakers, yoi. If you do find them then don't try to get close to them. Just keep them from leaving wherever they are until Bay, Pops and I come, yoi."

"Why would you need to—" Izou's gasp cut Thatch off.

"You said that Zack person was worried about the younger brat's health! What's wrong with him?"

Marco was so ready for this whole day to be done with. "He mentioned that it was one of the reasons why it was a bad idea to separate the three, yoi. While the crew believes a mad Sabo and Ace to be scary, the very thought of Luffy getting mad seems to terrify them. Wouldn't tell me exactly why. The first day we took Ace, Sabo made them stay at the island for a few hours so Luffy could work off some steam. Zack said Sabo ordered them to stay on the boat so they wouldn't get caught up in the destruction and so 'Luffy wouldn't accidentally attack them' yoi." He glanced over at Izou. "That's the other reason for me saying he is likely a carnivore-type Zoan Fruit-user, that level of aggression isn't found in any other type."

"So you need Bay to make a tranq or something?"

Marco flicked his eyes over to Thatch. Shaking his head he continued in a low voice that still managed to reach everyone in the room, eyes fixed on the ground at his feet. "No, yoi. I need Bay to take a look at the kid because Zack said he is very sick. When we took Ace the other two became very worried over his fate. The straw-hat brat became extremely depressed and frantic about getting Ace back. Zack didn't say too much more on that except the little brat hadn't eaten or slept much since Ace was taken. The man was worried about his other captain too, as the blond hadn't much to eat and didn't seem to get much rest either, but not to the same extent yoi."

"Well that's great. Not only can we not find the two buggers, but we also have to worry about making the one kid sicker than he already is. I thought the imp looked a little pale when I first saw him" Haruta stared at Jozu.

"What do you mean by that?" Thatch sighed.

"What he means, dear little brother of mine, is that the stress of being hunted down by a large group of pirates isn't very helpful when the one being hunted is a very sick kid. It would only cause his condition to get even worse. Combined with the fact that Marco just said neither of the two have been eating much in the past few days, the younger one could be in very bad shape."

"Before you go back to the infirmary, Thatch, I need your division to do something yoi." Waiting until he had the other's attention, Marco continued, "They need to go fishing."

"Didn't we stock up on supplies and food before coming out here to get Ace?" Kingdew was pretty damn sure they still had plenty of food left. Why would Marco ask them to get more?

Marco turned a lazy look on the much taller man. "We did yoi. Zack told me those three need to eat more than the average person, the youngest especially. The crew's worried because, according to them, Strawhat has barely eaten anything since the day after we grabbed Ace, yoi."

Thatch paled hearing this. He was a chef; it was his job to make sure people didn't go hungry and to make sure family ate well and stayed healthy. That he had let a basically starving child, even though he hadn't known at the time, go without food made him feel guilty and ashamed.

Haruta, seeing Thatch's anguished expression, gently rubbed the man's arm. "You didn't know. You can't beat yourself up over something you weren't aware of," he whispered.

Whitebeard took in the grim faces of his children. He was just as unhappy about what the actions they had taken caused, though as a captain he felt the weight of these events to rest solely on his shoulders. He was still somewhat unsure about keeping all three together, but if separating the three brats led to things like this he was hesitant to try and do so again. Both Marco and Thatch also seemed firm in their beliefs that not keeping the other two brats around meant no chance of Ace ever joining them.

"Thatch, do as your brother asked and get some of your division to start fishing. Everyone else is to help find the two missing brats and get them to Bay in the infirmary."

"But Pops," Haruta whined, "how are we _supposed_ to find them? We've been searching the ship for an hour, and have even tried to use haki to find them, but have come up with _nothing_! It's like they vanished or something."

Vista looked around at his gathered family as he asked, "I was wondering this earlier…But do you suppose they might have had some haki-based training?" Everyone looked to Marco.

"What are you looking at me for yoi? I already shared everything their crew was willing to tell me. Couldn't get anything else out of them." Marco moved to leave the room, Thatch following close behind, but stopped short of opening the door.

"Son?"

"You hear that yoi?"

Thatch looked at his brother in confusion before he, too, began to hear something. "What's going on _now_?"

Coming out of Pops' room, the Captain and Commanders first thought that their home was on fire. Smoke was billowing out of the doors leading below-deck and some of their siblings outside were bent over coughing. More were running out and swearing up a storm.

Hurrying over to check the possible damage and make sure his brothers were fine, Marco tried to see if he could sense the ones he knew were likely responsible for the chaos. It was difficult, their presences were obviously heavily suppressed and felt fuzzy, but he was able to find them; along with the many of their other brothers chasing them. As soon Marco found the two escaped captives their presences flared, apparently giving up the ruse of hiding now that they'd obviously been caught.

His lips thinned into a grim line. ' _It's still chaotic and angry, but the younger's presence is definitely weaker than it was this morning and when I last saw him yoi._ '

"Get ready, those troublesome brats are close yoi."

* * *

 **A/N: So yeah. This is what was on here before computer decided to go on strike. Again, missing a few thousand or so words which makes this a bit of a cliff-hanger. Sorry for the incomplete chapter but at least I'm still delivering (kinda) on my promise. _So please don't kill me?_ Thanks for hanging in there guys and I hope you liked the update and don't mind waiting for the last bit of the chapter. Ace _was_ finally going to get his lazy arse outta bed but, again thanks to derpy computer, we don't get to see that until next time.**

 **And what do you think of Whitebeard? Did he sound alright or a little…un-Whitebeardish?**

 **Confused about something? PM or put in review and will try to get back to you when I can or address it in the beginning of the next chapter. Thanks for all of the support you wonderful people!**

 **Asalkynn —[Ah-sahl-kine] Meaning something along the lines of "soul sibling". When no blood relation is held between individuals but a deep familial bond is made. Keepers of this bond hold each other at the level of kynahl/kynehs.**

 **Güżollsú —[Jew-zh-ol-sue; for 'ü', start to say 'eat' and hold your tongue position for the 'ea', round/purse your lips (like you are about to say 'coo') then make that same 'ea' sound (should sound similar to the word "ew" but not quite as pronounced is how a friend described it to me); 'ż' is like the 's' in 'measure'; 'ol' like in 'hole'] A more insulting and derogatory form of 'gúżollsú'. Using this form of the term almost guaranteed an ass-kicking to occur between individuals.**

 **Gúżollsú —[Joo-zh-ol-sue] Roughly equates to calling someone a 'moronic and ignorant dumbass with a brain of sand' for the Drakkón. The term implies that one has no knowledge or awareness of the world and lacks a mind. Since they value truth, knowledge and understanding, to be called this was considered extremely insulting and would sometimes lead to a fight between individuals.**

 **Kynahl —[Kin-ahl] Meaning "clutchmates". Hatchlings sharing the same set of blood parents and come from the same batch of eggs. Almost always clutchmates are raised in the same nest, unless extenuating circumstances occur; so though the hatchlings are also _kynehs_ , they refer to one another with this term instead.**

 **Kynehs —[Kin-ez] Meaning "nestmates". Hatchlings raised in the same nest and share one or no blood parents with each other are nestmates. Also those that belong to different clutches even if they share the same parents. **

**Válraas —[Vahl-Race] Roughly translates to "heart's will" or also "soul's shadow". A show of will, similar to Conqueror's Haki, though it does not knock-out those that come into contact with it. Used for intimidation between dragons to size one another up without harm via battle; a show of power through one's strength of heart and will. Since the technique does not use _ki_ (aka Haki) it is not considered to be a true attack on the dragon's opponent and is more equated to being a non-violent display of power. Those held close to the heart of the one displaying this will feel positive feelings of protectiveness and love (the 'light' of the heart's will); those against the one displaying this will feel negative feelings of dislike, hatred, and the feeling of being prey to the dragon (the 'shadow' of the heart's will). Unlike Conqueror's Haki that uses _ki_ to enforce one's Will over another, _válraas_ can be described as a psychic empathy-based wave rushing over one's opponent (though technically it _is_ a psychic attack, no harm is done to the opponent's mind other than maybe instilling a sense of fear). To simplify the difference between the two: _válraas_ = passive show of force, Conqueror's Haki = aggressive show of force.**


	5. Brothers' Chaotic Reunion!

**A/N: Thanks for your patience and continued patronage of my story. Am still surprised at how many people are following/favoriting this; again, honestly didn't believe the story would hit off so well. So here is Chapter 5 (plus the rest of what was supposed to be in Chapter 4). Honestly think my computer may have been trying to do me a favor in disguise (still mad at it though) because Chapter 4** ** _was_** **getting to be extremely long (word count is almost equal to previous three chapters combined, holy crap!) and it also stopped it right before the next big scene occurred. Am not completely 100% satisfied with Chapter 4 and may go back to change some of it, but for now I'll leave it.**

 **Anyhow, am thinking of starting a separate sort of entry to act as a glossary of terms for Luffy's language. That way if you ever forget what something means you can just open that really quick and take a peak.**

 **Also, still working on picture of Luffy as a dragon. Is coming along better than I thought but had to take a break from it because of stupid leg and awkward drawing position that would have forced on me. Have started working on it again and, even though am hitting a couple bumps, think it is turning out better than I thought (which is surprising).**

 **Also, the brothers can sing in this story (dance some and play a couple instruments too, sorry if some don't like that). Luffy likes musicians and music in canon!verse (a party animal!) and most definitely likes them here. Drakkón are very fond of music and enjoy listening to and making it.**

 **Disclaimer: Everything belongs to their respective parties and I do not get paid for posting this.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Brothers' Chaotic Reunion! Phoenix in the Fire-Field**

* * *

/( _Irritated_ ) Dammit Luffy, this is all your fault!/

/( _Angry Tired_ ) _My fault_!? How is this _my_ fault? You were the one who made that smokey thing go off! /

/( _Irritated_ ) Because you _pushed_ me and made me drop it! And it's called a "smoke bomb", not "smokey thing". /

/Potato tomato. And you were going to go the wrong way! We needed to go right!/

/( _Tired Exasperated_ ) That's not how it goes, Lu. And would you two stop? You're giving me a worse headache than I already ha—/

/Shut up, flame-brain!/ /Stupid Ace!/

Both boys ignored their bigger brother's indignant response, deciding to focus on evading capture whilst trying to navigate the now smoke-filled corridors.

* * *

Sabo had kept watch while Luffy dozed. It was too much to hope for the younger one to give-in to his body's demands and actually sleep. They were surrounded by enemies, trapped, couldn't get to Ace, and Lu was still too stressed and wound up. Partially Shifting helped to quell some of his restlessness, but Sabo knew his little brother still needed to appease his instinct to completely take on his true form. This just bought them a little time. When the desire became too strong, Sabo was praying that they'd finally be off this vessel—with their idiot hothead brother in tow—and someplace safe where no one would see; preferably back in their shared cabin back on the _Wild Card_.

Only once had Sabo been afraid they'd been discovered. Sensing people in the hall outside, both boys put in an even greater effort of hiding their presence. Sabo almost groaned aloud when he remembered how dusty the damn closet was. Their footprints were all over the floor and probably easy to spot with the addition of some light; sharing this with Luffy, they prepared for the likely chance their hideout was discovered. When someone had opened the closet door and came in to look around, stopping by the shelf Sabo had used to hide the nook, they thought were done for. Thankfully, the person turned and left without any hint they knew the boys were there.

Still, Sabo waited until Luffy said he couldn't hear anyone else walking around nearby before they eased up on suppressing their presence. Luffy settled back down to rest and Sabo resumed his vigil.

It wasn't long after the near run-in that Luffy informed him of the really strong auras closest to them were leaving. Carefully extending his _kisú_ Sabo found that the auras were congregating together, leaving all the weaker ones to continue searching. Though curious as to why the strong people had left, Luffy mentioned that Ace was close to waking and had given their older brother the impression to fake being asleep once he awoke. Now was as good a time as any to try a second rescue attempt. The only problem they had was how to navigate the maze-like interior of the ship to get to where they sensed Ace was being held. Oh, and how to avoid being caught.

After a few minutes, Luffy said that Ace was awake and had sensed several people outside the room he was laying in. Sabo figured these to be guards to prevent either Ace escaping or he and Luffy from getting to their brother. Talking to Ace relieved some of Luffy's worry and the boy was able to relax a little, taking over the task of watch while Sabo planned out their method of snatching Ace and getting off the ship.

Checking to make sure nobody was outside the closet and that the commanders were still all together, Sabo removed the shelf and items placed on it before going over and opening the door a crack. The blond asked Luffy to look around and show him what the younger saw. The older grinned in delight when the younger confirmed what he'd thought was there.

Earlier, when Sabo was shuffling about the room when the two had first gotten there, he'd seen some old jars and cans of miscellaneous cleaning supplies on the upper shelves. Thanks to a little accident caused by one of their crew awhile back he knew that combining a few of these together, and shaking them to get air in the mix, would create smoke. It was largely harmless, only mildly irritating to the eyes and perhaps the nose if he got the mix right, and could be used to make the enemy crew panic and think their ship was on fire. In the ensuing panic and chaos they could meet up with Ace and hightail it out of there.

Relaying the plan to Ace, the older agreed that he would make his escape once the guards left. Failing that, he would wait until Sabo and Lu gave him the signal and then just use his flames to burst right though them. Sabo gave a mild rant about Ace _not_ causing another explosion and to make sure he kept a low profile. It wouldn't do any good to broadcast an alert that they were escaping again.

With Luffy watching through the crack in the door, Sabo used the meager lighting to mix up his impromptu smoke bombs. Plugging the tops of the cans used to house the concoction with ripped pieces of blanket, he had Luffy use his talons to poke a few holes along one side of each. The blond just hoped he was right and that this half-baked plan of his would even work. Before taking off to where they sensed Ace Luffy shifted back to his fully Human shape—struggling a bit as he did so—with Sabo checking him over to make sure nothing was forgotten (it's happened before). As a just in-case sort of measure, Sabo tore two large squares off one of the dusty blankets. After shaking and snapping them to remove most of the dust, he folded them into bandanas and tied one around Luffy's face to cover the younger's mouth and nose. He did the same for himself with the other. Trusting his brother's actions had a reason to them, the dragon didn't question it.

Leaving the hall their closet was located in, they carefully meandered in the general direction they sensed Ace to be. They were doing great until Luffy silently warned there was a group of people in both corridors ahead of them. With a final prayer that his smoke bombs would work Sabo quickly shook a can before tossing down one of the halls, grabbed Luffy, then retreated back a few feet to hide in a room.

Good news: the makeshift smoke bomb worked. Bad news: it was not the color he'd been hoping for. The smoke was too light, a grayish-white; not the dark gray-black that would have really given the impression something was on fire and would have hidden his and Luffy's forms from sight. Still, the cloud looked to be dense enough to make two boys running through it hard to see. Once the other group in the neighboring hallway ran to see what the commotion was about the two brothers made a run for it down the newly vacated hall.

They didn't have many cans so Sabo only used them if the situation required it. He had to spend a minute to impress upon Luffy the importance of being stealthy for now; the little dragon just wanted to blow a hole in the side of the ship and be done with it. A bonk on the head and mental rant about how that would just bring more trouble in the form of angry, strong commanders and their captain (plus the hundred or so other pirates) sufficiently scrapped that idea.

Luffy quietly cursed as he stumbled now and then, his fatigue starting to grate on his mind and body. Ace and Sabo radiated concern but he shoved it to the side to focus on his surroundings. Sensing they were finally getting close to Ace, he had to quickly yank Sabo right when he caught the scent of several Humans ahead to the left (probably Ace's guards). Unfortunately, the abrupt movement startled a rather loud curse out of Sabo and made him drop one of their last smoke bombs.

The pirates guarding the burnt entrance to the infirmary noticed the scuffle and sent some to investigate. Seeing the smoke and their brothers being thrown back towards them, the rest of the group realized they had found the missing captives and went to try their hand at subduing them. The two brothers, not wanting to get penned in and hearing some of the other enemy pirates catching on to what was happening, decided to head up top where there was more room to fight.

* * *

/Ace, you're welcome to leave your room anytime now…/

/I already have, Sabo!  ( _Annoyed_ ) Could you guys have used any more smoke? I can hardly see where I'm going!/

The halls were filled with the milky smoke, and Ace was having a difficult time trying to pick out which way to go to get to his younger brothers. Lucky for him, a breeze was flowing through the halls and was pulling the thick haze along with it. Luffy and Sabo also left behind a trail of groaning or unconscious bodies for him to follow.

While he'd been sleeping, and then lying awake while pretending to sleep, Luffy had shared a few details of what'd happened while he'd been out. Ace was upset because the entire time he'd felt Luffy trying to shield him from how exhausted and unstable the younger was.

Not wanting to overtax his baby brother, Ace tried to get more concrete impressions of the younger's health from Sabo. A series of impressions and vague images later, Ace came to the conclusion that Luffy was approaching his breaking point. His baby brother needed food, rest, and to Shift. Resting and Shifting were of more import at the moment he figured. Luffy would probably be too keyed up to eat until those first two were taken care of; which would only happen if he were with both older brothers and someplace he felt safe.

/( _Worry_ ) We've been found. Get here fast. Stay hidden!/

Ace cursed and sped up after hearing Luffy's warning. His ribs still ached and his head was pounding again but nothing was going to keep him from protecting the only two people in the world who loved him!

* * *

They were almost to the exit that lead up above when Luffy felt it. Seeing Sabo tense before kicking a pirate out of the way let him know the older had felt it too. The stronger pirates had caught on to what was happening and had found them.

Wanting the pirates above to not search further Sabo gave the command to stop suppressing their presence. He hoped this would distract those intent on capturing them from noticing Ace was up and about.

Seeing as they had a bunch of angry pirates hacking up a lung from the smoke behind them and several ready-to-fight commanders waiting above, Sabo reluctantly gestured from them to take the stairs. Luffy sent a brief message to Ace telling him they'd been found and for him to hurry up before following his brother.

Taking the last two smoke bombs, Luffy widened the holes in them at Sabo's direction before both shook the cans hard and tossed them onto the deck. Somehow—Sabo _still_ doesn't get how it happened but somehow things like this seem to be the norm for Luffy—Luffy's can exploded once it touched the deck. The result was a huge, thick cloud of smoke from the exploded can and a meandering thick trail from the other (due to the ship's constant rocking).

Hiding their presence again, the two brothers took advantage of the gathered pirates' shock to leave the entryway and try to put some distance between them and the stronger auras. They stayed within the cloud as well as they could, avoiding and knocking out the pirates who came too close.

Sabo made sure to keep Luffy within his limited visual range. While they could still sense each other through their mental bond, it wasn't accurate enough to tell them how the other was doing without directing more focus towards it. They could only get small impressions of the other's condition and general location. _Kisú_ would help but Luffy was too tired and out of sorts to do more than focus on suppression, he could only dimly sense where the stronger presences were at the moment. Sensing where Sabo was would be hard with how much both were suppressing their presences on a normal day and impossible for the younger right now.

Keeping mental communication to a minimum (Sabo didn't want to overload Luffy's mind while in such a fragile state and Luffy was too exhausted to argue) they kept sight of each other and covered one another's backs. When the blond noticed the smoke starting to dissipate and Ace still hadn't arrived, though he was much closer to them now, Sabo started to worry. He could feel Luffy's exhaustion getting the better of him; the younger stumbling more often and experiencing greater difficulty in dodging the pirates around them. The commanders also hadn't moved from where they stood when Luffy and Sabo first appeared on deck.

/( _Concern Worry Unease_ ) Careful Lu. The strong ones are up to something./

/( _Anger Dislike Agree_ ) Maybe… ( _Sabo and Luffy…hard breathing…tired…Surrounded…bound_ )/

The images were vague but Sabo clearly understood what Luffy was trying to imply, he'd come to the same unhappy conclusion. The stronger pirates were waiting for the two to tire themselves out before moving in to catch them.

Seeing the last of their hazy cover receding from the wind on-deck, Sabo came up with a last ditch plan. /Lu, if we jumped over the side do you think you could get us in through one of the gunports?/

Luffy really wanted to say 'yes he could easily do that', but doubted he'd be able to make it to the railing unless Sabo carried him. He was at his limit; he was tired, weak, sore, and lacked the strength to make another go. For most of the day Luffy had been running solely on fumes and now those fumes had finally sputtered and died out. Weakly, and slightly ashamed, Luffy conveyed this to his older brother through a light touch on the other's wrist.

/( _Love Denial Concern_ ) It's fine Lu! I'll think of something else, it's not your fault!/ Deep down Sabo had grimly expected this answer. Luffy was having trouble just staying upright at this point, only sheer will keeping him on his feet and not lying face-down on the deck. There was no way Luffy would be able to make a run for it at this point. All Sabo could do was protect him when the younger _did_ finally go down.

Their situation only hooked a curve for the worse as he saw the commanders finally starting to separate and spread out, beginning to box the brothers in. The other weaker pirates noticed as well and moved to clear the way for their leaders. Sabo and Luffy kept wary eyes on their enemy, standing back to back to avoid blind-spots.

/( _Worry_ ) No Shifting Luffy! Not unless Ace or I say so. Promise!/ Light growling met this request. /I mean it, Lu! You can't do anything that might give you away! Promise!/

/( _Deny Resent_ _Unhappy Anger Dislike_ )/

/Now Luffy!/

/( _Unhappy Tired Dislike Resign_ ) …Fine. Promise. No Shifting./ Luffy hated how tired and weak he felt. He hated being banned from Changing and helping protect his brothers even more though. Yeah, he understood it was for his safety but he still despised not being allowed to reveal himself when it could potentially help his _kynehs_. Even a weak and exhausted dragon can be dangerous. ' _Only reason I give in is because of what could happen to them…_ '

Sabo sent a small wave of gratitude, apology and love to his baby brother. He also sent a wordless request/demand for Ace to hurry his fiery ass up.

The brothers' exchange had only taken a few seconds in the real world. Eyeing the encroaching enemy pirates, the blond side-glanced to his left ad gave an internal relieved sigh. There was still a hole in the circle of commanders that hadn't been closed yet!

"—that you've calmed down a little, perhaps we can talk like civilized people?" Stormy blue eyes flicked towards the large, mustachioed man with two large swords hanging from his waist standing several paces in front of him. Luffy's growls became more audible, reaching the ears of the pirates standing nearest to him.

' _When had he started talking?'_ Sabo shifted his stance into one that gave the impression he was going to continue fighting. He sent a quick image and sense of intent to Luffy and hoped he was coherent enough to understand it. Grabbing Luffy's wrist with his right hand, the younger quieting while tensing his arm and twisting to latch onto Sabo in return, Sabo gave a quick flick of his left to dislodge the small paper-pouch he'd hidden his sleeve.

* * *

Hearing Marco's warning the commanders focus their attention on the open door, with smoke billowing out it, leading below. Whitebeard takes a watchful stance as he remains furthest from the scene, preferring to wait and watch whatever follows for now. Those that had been trying to clear their lungs and eyes of the foul smoke in the open air readied themselves to confront the escapees once again.

At the same time as the chaos-creating duo's presence disappears two smoking _things_ fly out of the doorway, one exploding after a bounce on the deck and sending the other skittering off to the side. Concentrating on his haki, Marco is able to dimly make out what he believes to be the older of the pair's presence; the younger, probably due to his current condition, is much easier to track (though still doing a fair job of suppressing their presence). He senses the escaped captives rush the deck and hide within the giant ball of dense smoke sitting before the door. The wind catches and expands the milky-grey cloud, giving the top- and straw-hat wearing boys more room to hide in while covering the pirates trying to detain them.

With Observation Haki, the commanders and captain 'watch' the boys fight against their surprised and confused siblings. Vista mentally commends them for using the smoke as a cover and efficiently dealing with those who come too close. Izou tracks their progress and notices how the two follow along with the milky cloud's wind-driven path, edging closer to the _Moby_ 's side while remaining in the densest parts. Haruta watches on in fascination, wondering where the two managed to even _find_ smoke-bombs and where they had been hiding until now; being a prankster and sometimes-stealth/spy of the Whitebeard Pirates, he thought he'd known of every hiding place on this ship. Jozu and Kingdew gazed at their groaning and moaning brothers, mentally tallying who needed how many more hours of hand to hand and haki training. Though understanding that, even frustrated and upset, their brothers wanted to catch the troublemakers while inflicting as little harm as possible and were going easy, it was still no excuse for how badly they were underestimating their targets.

Cloud clearing, Thatch was able to better watch the pair's movements. His Observation Haki, while good, wasn't to the level of Marco's, Pops' or Izou's; so he wasn't able to get a clear sense of the fighting boys' actions. With the constant wind thinning the thick haze he could see how the two were fighting and, more importantly, get a better look at their condition.

The top-hat wearing blond dressed like a gentleman and straw-hat black-haired child never strayed beyond arm's reach of each other. If one began to move beyond that distance then the other would immediately move to compensate for it. While moving about and fighting, the blond maintained a position that kept him slightly in front of the younger kid.

Looking closer at the smallest of the pair, Thatch's lips thinned and eyes darkened at what he saw. Strawhat was pale and had difficulty making smooth movements, his attacks and evades shaky and semi-uncontrolled. The boy stumbled often and some of his attempts to attack or dodge fell short; his breaths were heavy and labored, as if he'd been running a marathon. Still the boy fought on, never slacking in defending his comrade's back.

' _If what that kid's crewmate said was true I'm shocked he even has the ability to do all this with the condition he's in._ '

As the smoke lifted even more, almost completely gone now, Thatch realized that the older teen was not only fighting while leading the younger but was also covering for the child. Anytime the small raven-hair faltered the other leapt to his defense. A brief nudge or gentle shove when the child stumbled kept him from falling and helped him continue forward. If a hit missed or one of Thatch's siblings got too close then the older teen would either knock the offender away or pull the kid out of reach and closer to him.

Seeing the kids like this, Thatch wondered, ' _How would they fight if they were healthy and fresh?'_

A tap on his shoulder had the Fourth looking to his right. Marco subtly motioned for him to get Izou and the other commanders' attention. Looking at his older brother's face one would think the man bored of the situation, a general expression of laziness written in his features and supported by his casual stance. Thatch, however, saw the concerned light hidden in the blue eyes and the tensed jaw that hinted of silent worry.

Lightly smacking his geisha-dressed brother's arm, Thatch leaned over to whisper into Izou's ear once the other turned his analyzing gaze off the two escapees. "Quietly get the others' attention."

Izou shifted away slightly to see his brother's face, question clear in his eyes. Thatch tipped his head towards Marco, who was back to watching the fight. Looking between Marco and the two troublesome brats understanding dawned on Izou. He quickly got his brothers' notice, indicating they be silent, and pointed to Marco.

* * *

Seeing how the brats fought his children, how in-synch they were with one another, showed they were used to fighting at each other's side. The level of trust they displayed made it obvious this was a natural occurrence for them, something that required no thought to accomplish. He could sense their frustration and desperation as they fought. Saw the determination and resolve to succeed and reach their lost captain.

Whitebeard caught his eldest son's gesture for the commanders to discreetly surround the two fighting brats. Though he could easily subdue the pirate brats the giant captain opted not to. He was impressed by the stubborn will and tenacity the cheeky duo had shown so far while aboard his ship; not at all against the idea of adopting them in addition to Ace. This thought brought back to mind the demand issued by the Spade Pirates, Marco's words, and Thatch's story.

Ace's eyes held too much anger and hatred in their grey depths for one so young. He looked weary of the world and scarred by the darkness it held. Hearing that the young captain, despite being fiercely protective of them, kept himself at a distance from those he sailed with saddened Whitebeard. After meeting the kid face to face, his resolve to make him a part of his family only deepened.

He'd believed the only way to break through the fire-user's shell was to isolate the boy from his old crew and have his children integrate the brat into this one. By giving the young captain a new home and people he could see as family, the veteran captain hoped those shadows Ace carried about him would fade. The kidnapping and isolation were only deemed necessary because Whitebeard knew a stubborn, hard-headed brat when he saw one. Many of his current sons and daughters could be described that way.

Looking at the straw-hat and top-hat wearing brats, obviously reaching their limits but choosing to continue fighting anyway, the captain was reminded of Ace. Whitebeard could easily picture the hotheaded youth fighting with these two at his side. In fact, back when he first confronted Ace these two had stood solidly next to him. Ace's posture at that time had been defensive, protective even, but also less tense; like the two's presence was expected and welcomed.

Whitebeard's eyes narrowed faintly as he watched the rambunctious brats. If what he'd heard earlier was true (he was really starting to believe it, regardless of Thatch's story) and these two were removed from Ace's vicinity, then Marco's hunch would very likely turn to reality. In the case that Thatch was somehow correct about these brats' past, Whitebeard would only be causing more pain to fall on them if he kept the boys apart.

Decided, Whitebeard kept his distance from the fight and played the part of the observer, for now. The two brats already held him in a negative light for kidnapping their friend and then refusing to return him Ace disliked him already for some unknown reason; the fiery brat's desire to defeat felt different than others who had come after his head. The youngest probably disliked him even more than the other two, too. He'd been subjected Whitebeard's Conqueror's Haki and, weakened, was made to watch that same force down his companion while Ace was taken away. The giant captain didn't want to risk making another negative impact so soon, especially if he wanted the feisty brats to join his family as well.

* * *

Marco watched as the headache-inducing pair of brats finally took notice of the commanders' movements. They immediately spun so that their backs faced each other, the blond facing Vista and Izou and the shrimp facing him and Thatch.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Thatch's shoulders tense. Flicking his gaze to the younger Whitebeard Pirate, he noted the worry and concern in the redhead's taut expression, a hint of guilt in his darkened hazel eyes. This close to the smaller brat revealed more about the condition his body was in, and Thatch didn't seem to be taking the reality of the younger's situation too well.

Turning his focus back onto the dup before him, Marco raised an eyebrow slightly at the look the little straw-hatted shrimp was giving him. Despite standing on shaky legs that looked about to buckle and send him to the ground, the kid held firm in his position of guarding the older teen's back. Anger and displeasure radiated off the child in thick waves as he shot baleful glares at those who stood before him. The glare he kept directing at Marco (and the one aimed behind him at Pops) were the harshest though.

Marco was confused as to why the kid was so much more hostile towards him. Pops he could understand, that was easy. But why him? ' _That's right, yoi. He saw me take Ace from them again._ '

The top-hatted gentleman tilted his head slightly towards the black-haired child just as the younger tensed and started to quietly growl. Marco only heard the sound thanks to his superior hearing. With what the kid has done so far since he came aboard, and from what he'd been told, the Phoenix-zoan firmly believed the little kid to be a fellow Zoan-type fruit-user. He grimaced mentally.

' _An aggressive and stressed carnivore-type, even in this kid's state, could do some damage if he loses it yoi._ ' They would have to focus on getting the smaller of the pair subdued and under control before going for the blond teen. He didn't want any more of his siblings to require a trip to the infirmary; there were enough as is.

Vista took a half-step forward, his hands raised with palms out to show he meant no harm. "Please, stop. Hopefully, now that you've calmed down a little, perhaps we can talk like civilized people?"

Marco's fellow commander barely got halfway through the question before the growls emanating from the straw-hat child grew louder and deeper. The kid's partner grabbed his wrist and the kid quieted a little, though the feral air surrounding him never abated. Marco only then realized that the growling child was easy to sense, his presence only slightly masked. The other was still hard to lock onto but the little one was registering to his Observation Haki clear as day.

' _Kid looks like he's going pass-out any minute now yoi._ '

Just as he saw the little straw-hat kid loosen up his stance, the blond teen flicked his arm and smoke quickly engulfed the pair. The commanders were in shock at the sudden development, not expecting the brats to have this last trick up their sleeve (literally). The First Division Commander was the only one mildly thinking something like this was going to happen. He'd seen the older ex-captive Spade Pirate shift his head slightly towards where Jozu and Blenheim were trying to move closer together to completely trap the escapees. The younger merely flickered his gaze over the spot before refocusing on the commanders standing in front of him.

Transforming his arms into fiery blue and gold wings, Marco took to the air as he shouted, "Don't just stand there yoi!"

From the above, the bird-man saw how the older teen was half-carrying, half-dragging the younger child along as they made a mad dash towards the ship's side. Already they had made it through the gap between Jozu and Blenheim.

' _Do they mean to jump in the damn_ ocean _!? The kid will drown before they make it anywhere yoi!_ '

Shaking off their surprise when they heard Marco's shout, the other commanders pursued the boys. Seeing where the targets were headed gave most of them the same idea as the First.

The two Spade Pirates were within ten feet of the rail when the younger one tripped and fell, the older stumbling for a couple paces when the raven was tugged from his grip. The blond spun around and made to snatch up his friend, a panic-stricken expression marring his face. He'd stopped suppressing his haki (Marco had the sneaking suspicion that someone _had_ taught these two something of the skill for how well they could hide themselves) so the flying commander could sense the absolute fear and worry emanating from the kid, along with some undercurrents of anger.

Vista, Izou, Thatch, and Marco were the first to react after the two's small, but effective, distraction and were closer to the brats than the others. The large dual-swordsman passed up the kid on the ground, apparently deciding that the blond "gentleman" presented a greater threat than he weak and exhausted wild-child. Izou and Thatch stopped by the, currently growling, straw-hatted kid and were trying to pin him down without hurting him.

Vista was already having trouble with his quarry, who was managing to keep out of reach while trying to get around the swordsman. The large pirate was acting as a barrier between the two kids, moving to keep the top-hatted blond from getting to his younger comrade. Though doing a fair job of evading the more experienced pirate, both Vista and Marco noticed the teen was slowing down. Still was a pain trying to catch if he judged the small frown on Vista's face right.

By now the rest of his brothers had surrounded the two groups, those who weren't commanders keeping their distance and staying out of the way. Even if the two younger pirates got free of the ones presently trying to subdue them, there was nowhere for them to run. The commanders had totally surrounded them and left no holes to be taken advantage of.

Curses moved Marco's gaze from the blond and Vista to Izou and Thatch's struggle. The Sixteenth ad Fourth Division Commanders were having their own problems with the wild kid (Marco could see some new bruises forming on the little skin exposed on his brothers). Even completely exhausted and obviously at the end of his rope the shrimp was still able to give Marco's brothers a hard time. Strawhat was making haphazard at dodging and evading the two commanders trying to grab at him as he stumbled about on shaky legs, sometimes tripping and having to make a crawling leap to avoid the others' hands. Izou and Thatch also found themselves on the defensive at times. If they weren't careful in how they tried to grab him, the shrimp would either try to bite a reaching hand or land solid (if somewhat awkward) hit on undefended body parts or extended limbs.

The pirate kid glared at anyone his eyes landed on, defiant even in the face of the situation he found himself. Growls from his throat were a constant at this point, much louder and deeper than the ones Marco had heard before—' _Though not quite what they were when Pops took Ace again. Not yet at least, yoi.'_ —and spiking at odd intervals. It took a moment for the bird-zoan to realize that the growls spiked whenever Vista almost succeeded in grabbing the kid's partner.

Marco furrowed his brows minutely in confusion as he hovered above the scene. He didn't sense the kid using any haki, his actions clearly based on instinct, and he wasn't able to get a clear line of sight to see what was happening to his crewmate. ' _So how does he know when the other is in trouble? Is it a result of his Devil Fruit yoi?'_

Marco scowled as he continued watching the little raven-head shrimp, noting Izou and Thatch were also visibly growing more concerned. The kid's breathing was ragged and he was growing paler. Most of the movements were forced and his stumbling and shaking of the limbs more pronounced, body struggling to obey the commands being demanded of it.

The leader of the First Division was paying more attention to the straw-hat kid because of this. If the kid did have Zoan abilities, the animal whose nature he shared could react violently if he tried to use them right now. Since the kid was so young it was probable he hadn't had the time and experience needed to master the Devil Fruit, so losing control of himself when exposed to circumstances such this was a very real danger.

When the small pirate had a particularly bad stumble, Thatch and Izou were finally able to latch onto him. The chef and gunman each grabbed an arm, placed a hand on each shoulder, and tried to gently force the kid to the ground. _Tried_ being the key term. As soon as their hands touched him the little straw-hat kid switched from growling to full-on _snarling_ , struggling violently against the grips holding him. Marco was surprised at the amount of anger and rage emanating from the small body; he frowned when he felt beneath all of that a sense of fear. It was barely there, perhaps the brat trying to hide it or not acknowledging it, but there nonetheless.

' _I thought they knew we weren't out to harm them, just detain. Why is he afraid, yoi?'_

Out of the corner of his eye Marco saw the kid's accomplice pause. Turning his focus to the other pair, he saw Vista take advantage of the young pirate's distracted state to grab the blond's arm. Shouting colorful curses at the larger pirate, the teen tried to break his hold.

Feeling the fight was essentially over, Marco lowered himself to the deck near Thatch. Izou had left Thatch to deal with the snapping and snarling child they'd managed to force down to the ground to go help Vista with his charge. His pompadour-sporting brother had the kid on his stomach, a hand braced between the shoulder blades, the other gripping the kid's forearms and pinning them to the middle of the kid's back. Thatch was kneeling behind and over the kid, one leg pinning the smaller two together on the ground, using his size to keep the small pirate from wriggling around too much.

Reaching his sibling's side he asked, "Need any help yoi?"

Grunting as he tried to get better hold of his squirming captive, Thatch replied, "Thanks for the offer Birdbrain, but I think—Oof!—I got this handled. Izou and Vista sound like they're having fun."

Marco and Thatch looked over to see Vista and Izou trying to wrestle the younger pirate into submission. Vista was holding the brat against his chest, one arm pinning the teen's in front of him, the other arm wrapped about the torso to keep the teen from moving freely. Poor Izou was muttering indignantly, arms wrapped around and pinning the teen's writhing legs together, as he tried to keep the struggling and cursing young pirate from kicking and getting free.

"Can we get some cable or chains over here?" Vista looked to his brothers for help.

One of those watching asked, "We got thick rope, why can't we use that?"

"Because apparently mere _rope_ wasn't enough the first time and I don't want to go through this mess again," the swordsman answered.

Thatch chuckled at hearing this and Marco silently agreed with his brother. The chef went silent and Marco noticed him looking down at the kid under him. Lying limp, no longer struggling against his captor, the kid just stared at his friend being held by Marco's brothers. Both men shared looks of confusion and worry, each noticing that the kid's growls had gone silent while they'd been watching Vista and Izou.

Marco couldn't sense anything from the kid's aura. He wasn't hiding his haki, he was too weak for that it seemed. Even with his strong Observation Haki, equal if not greater than Pops', the quiet kid appeared as a blank slate.

' _Wait, what is that?'_ He'd been so focused on trying to read the straw-hat pirate that Marco almost missed the scent coming from the limp kid. A scent which was rapidly growing stronger, although he still couldn't sense anything from the younger's haki. ' _He's_ afraid _...Why is he so scared?'_ Sensing something was about to happen, even if the young pirate's haki didn't indicate it, Marco tried to warn his brother.

"Thatch-yoi—!" Too late.

A guttural, ferocious snarl burst from the small pirate's throat at the same time he violently bucked his entire body. Thatch, taken completely by surprise, lost his grip. The hand braced between the shoulders slipped on the dusty, red vest to the deck of the ship…right by the kid's head. Immediately, the child twisted his head and viciously bit into the man's arm. Strawhat growled around the flesh, blood dripping from the wound, as Thatch cried out in pain and reeled back. Freed from being pinned by Thatch's knee-jerk reaction, the kid held on until Thatch had accidentally pulled him to a crouched position. Marco could only watch as the brat let go just as he kicked out behind him with both sandaled feet. The blow connected with Thatch's midsection and sent the commander flying for several feet, landing heavily on his back and gasping for air. It had happened in only a couple bare seconds. Too quick for even Marco to react in time.

The Phoenix-zoan saw Haruta, who'd been standing closest to their group, move to intercept the violent kid before he get anywhere. The youngest commander, unprepared for the shrimp's sudden agility, was met by a spinning kick that launched the teen directly into a still-recovering Thatch.

' _What the hell just happened yoi!?'_

Snapping out of his shocked stupor, Marco spread his arms-turned wings and jumped to stop the now running raven-head from reaching Vista and Izou. He kept his wings splayed out, using them as fiery wall to shield his brothers and prevent the wild kid before him from reaching them. The kid's gaze settling on him felt oddly unnerving, though the straw-hat kept him from seeing the small pirate's eyes. Tuning out the shouting and yelling going on around him while trusting his family to watch his back, Marco focused entirely on the straw-hat pirate.

Though he tried using Observation Haki, Marco couldn't read the younger's actions; he had to rely on reaction speed to counter and block. A frown ghosted over his features. The kid still resembled a blank slate and if he was thinking about his actions Marco would have been able to use his haki to read them. Since he couldn't it meant that the kid was acting on instinct, no conscious thought put forth. After another exchange Marco's nose was assaulted with that same scent from earlier, almost completely covering the child's own unique scent.

Fear. The kid was impossibly afraid. The constant and disturbingly inhuman-sounding growling. The violence being displayed. The sudden enhanced reflexes and agility when he had dropped from exhaustion only minutes prior. The increasing desperation lacing his actions. It was all because of the sheer amount of _fear_ this kid was feeling.

' _He only got this bad after seeing his friend captured.'_ He remembered now what Zack had told him. How only idiots would be stupid enough to try separating the three and that they were very protective of one another. Obviously, the Whitebeards were witnessing what was meant by those words. ' _We're only exacerbating the situation yoi…'_

"Vista. Izou. Slowly come over here yoi. Brat stop squirming, it will only set your friend off." Marco's low steady voice sliced through the commotion. The commander didn't dare to take his eyes off the straw hat wearing kid, his instincts telling him that would only call for an immediate attack.

Feeling the presences of his two brothers and their charge moving towards him, the phoenix tensed as he sensed the raven's focus shift to land behind him. The deck had gone silent. Everyone watching and waiting to see what happened. He could even sense his father's gaze centered on them.

"What are you planning, Marco? If the little one makes it to us _this_ handful will get free and they'll both get away. Again." Hearing Vista's whisper, and noting a lack of sound from the blond in their arms, he was about to ask when the other continued, "I have my hand over his mouth, if you were wondering. His threats were rather…creative, but I was getting a headache."

Keeping a watchful eye on the unpredictable kid still growling a few paces away, Marco turned his head just enough to see the blond teen out of the corner of his eye. The teen was extremely tense, though he'd gone completely still in Vista's hold. Izou had stopped holding the young pirate's legs and was standing at Vista's side, prepared to act if anything should happen. Worry shone in the teen's blue eyes as they locked onto the space his friend occupied, hidden by Marco's raised wing. Those same blues met his own lighter pair, apprehension quickly filling them, before flicking back in the direction of the smaller raven-haired pirate.

"I'm sorry things got to this point yoi." Deep blue flashed to center back on him with a guarded expression clouding them. "Can you calm your friend down? He doesn't look good and we are worried he'll hurt himself."

"Seriously, Birdy, what are you doing?" The blond teen darted a look at Izou, returning back to him after a moment.

Keeping his eyes on the two younger pirates, Marco quietly responded, "Do you not remember what we talked about, yoi? That straw hat kid is not in any state to be doing what he is, he's becoming too unstable emotionally and physically. His continuing to fight and run about will only serve to harm him further yoi."

"Still," Izou hissed back, "you _saw_ what he did to Haruta and Thatch! If it's because of his Fruit-ability, like we think, what's to say he won't attack his own friend?"

Marco filed away the surprised look that briefly appeared on the captive blond's face, choosing to ignore it for now. "He only got violent after seeing you two catch this guy. I can only sense fear coming off the little shrimp now. I'm hoping that," he gazed meaningfully at the captured blond pirate, " _you_ would kindly go and settle your friend down…Without trying for another escape yoi."

Vista shrugged in noncommittal agreement while Izou huffed and crossed his arms. The blond teen stared at Marco for another few moments before he nodded. Marco took this as an acceptance of his proposal.

Returning the majority of his attention to growling and upset kid standing in a slightly hunched position before him, Marco slowly lowered his wings. He tilted his head in the barest of nods to signal Vista to start forward with the blond he held tight in his arms.

* * *

The commanders, and everyone else for that matter, were so drawn to what the wild, black-haired child would do next they were completely oblivious to anything else on the ship. This included the fiery teen who had finally managed to haul his sore body up into the light of the afternoon sun.

Ace had been trying to hurry his ass up after receiving Sabo's request for help (more like demand). When he was waking up he'd realized his battered body hadn't hurt as much. Luffy, who'd sensed his rise to consciousness, informed him of the bare outline of what happened that morning; this included a side-note of "by the way, Sabo gave you some blood so that you 'wouldn't be useless later'" and that Sabo said "stay hidden, idiot." His body was bruised to hell and still hurt whenever he tried to move (walking was an uncomfortable and painful endeavor) but at least the fire-user could get about on his own now. It was a far cry better than that morning had been for sure.

Dimly recollecting the way up top from the botched escape, Ace had estimated he needed only a few more minutes to get to the stairs leading up. He was growing worried because Luffy's presence in his mind—always so warm, loving and damn _accepting_ of his existence that it made Ace _ache_ —started dimming. Ace had felt Luffy's worsening state since he'd been woken by the younger not too long ago; had felt how _tired_ and _drained_ his baby brother was even then. It'd gotten so much worse. The fiery teen sensed the smaller raven growing quieter and quieter, eventually no longer connecting with him. So he almost fell and kissed the wooden floor in surprise when the back of his mind suddenly seemed to explode in pained desperation and fear.

Dread immediately churned in his gut at the scale of the youngest's fear. Sabo, without "piggybacking" on Luffy's other bond with Ace, couldn't communicate with him beyond sending emotions or fuzzy images/impressions. Still, Ace would have known if something had happened to his blond brother. Right now the younger pirate was fine, though Ace felt a matching sense of worry and dread coming from him.

Ace tried to contact the two several times. Luffy didn't seem to be able to hear him, the fear the younger was experiencing drowning and blocking Ace's attempts. Sabo was too distracted by whatever was happening to their little brother to notice that Ace calling out him.

When he finally reached the stairs that went up, Ace was in full-on "Big Brother Panic Mode". Limping up the steps (still hiding his presence like Sabo had commanded) he was hit by how silent the deck was. Silent…except for what was obviously their baby brother's angry growling. This only served to worry the older freckled raven more. Luffy only sounded like _this_ —close to being completely inhuman and unnatural by any standard—when he was about to Shift and attack. But he can't Shift because Sabo and Ace always made it their priority to hide Luffy and keep him safe; within reason and without taking away too much of his freedom, of course. So what had happened?

Ace got his answer upon reaching the top of the stairs and looking out across the deck. All the Whitebeard Pirates, and damn Whitebeard himself, were all watching a set of figures standing in the middle of a ring of their crewmates. Ace's heart almost stopped when he first saw the scene, red soon tinged his vision once he actually processed what was happening.

Luffy stood, hunched over and snarling menacingly, facing a blond pirate with lazy eyes and flaming…Wings? Were those _wings_ the guy's arms? Behind him stood a lady in a purplish robe-thing next to a big guy, with a considerable mustache, wearing almost all black clothing with white gloves and a top-hat that reminded him of Sabo's. Two swords hung from the man's waist behind his back. It was what, or more accurately _who_ , the swordsman was holding pinned to his chest that had most likely set Lu off.

' _No._ Hell no _! Nobody is allowed to hurt my brothers!'_

Luffy and Sabo may or may not be hurt physically—probably only having a few bruises between them at most. But Ace had to block his connection with the youngest brother so he could at least _think_ without Lu's 'screaming' clouding his mind (he still felt terrible for doing it though). Lu was _terrified_ and Ace didn't know _why_. Sabo was right there in front of his baby brother so what was scaring Luffy so bad he was losing control of himself? Did these bastards threaten Sabo or something? Or did they already do something to his brother?

He'd stood at the door leading below, watching his brothers and coming to terms with their situation, for only a minute. A slightly louder growl (and he could hear the plea in it under the violence being promised even if no one other than Sabo did) knocked Ace out of his shock. Rage filled him and the fire-user snapped.

Flames flared to life, wrapping about his body like a living inferno. Ace practically flew over to his brothers while launching a massive Fire-Fist attack at the one holding Sabo and roaring, "STAY _AWAY_ FROM THEM, BASTARDS!"

The guy with blue wings blocked his attack from reaching the sword-guy unfortunately but at least the dude was surprised enough by Ace's appearance to drop Sabo. Ace landed in a couple feet in front of Luffy, who had quieted down to harsh growls instead of the animalistic snarling from a few moments ago. Sabo scrambled to his feet and raced over to check on their dragon-child, not even pausing as he darted a look at the older brother. Ace internally grimaced and sent a feeling of apology to the blond, only getting a mild acceptance and impression of 'at-least-you're-here-now-so-we'll-talk-about-this-later'. That was _not_ going to be a fun talk; Ace predicted lots of yelling and cursing and pain.

His fire created an enemy-free twenty-foot radius around them. Tall, raging flames lined the perimeter and their very heat forced the Whitebeard Pirates to draw back even further. The space between the brothers and the flaming wall was doused in fire as well, though not nearly as hot as the edge-flames or as tall. The brothers themselves stood amongst a set of flames too. Only these gave off a gentle warmth as they licked at the two younger siblings. Enveloping them in a gentle cocoon that acted as a shield from the intense heat and also providing a sense of protection and affection. Ace still had slip-ups with burning things without meaning to, but thanks to long hours (days, weeks, months) of training with Luffy he no longer felt any fear about letting his flames near his precious family. His fires would never hurt Sabo or Luffy!

Ace glared through the fire at those surrounding them, letting out growls of his own when some idiot tried to get too close and increasing the intensity of the flames in that area. This was his Fire-Field! A domain of _his_ making and _his_ to manipulate. It took a ton of energy and concentration to keep it up but hearing Lu's upset growls and Sabo's desperate whispers trying to comfort their littlest brother behind him spurred Ace on. He'd willingly give everything he had, and more if needed, to protect the only ones in this entire godforsaken world who knew what he was and still wholeheartedly loved him.

* * *

Marco saw the giant ball of fire headed towards them and immediately started cursing himself for not noticing the new presence on-deck sooner. Alright, he _was_ rather preoccupied with the snarling shrimp in front of him that looked ready to take advantage of any distraction on his part…but still. He was a damn _division commander_! First Mate of the Whitebeard Pirates and arguably the second strongest on this ship, right after the Old Man. It stung his pride to know that he had been so distracted by the straw-hat brat that he hadn't sensed Ace's arrival until the brat launched an attack at them and revealed himself.

And honestly, it _had_ to be Ace and not some other idiot dumb enough to directly attack a ship-full of Whitebeard Pirates. The feel of the fire headed towards Marco, Vista, and Izou was the same as the hothead's. The bellowing roar echoing with fury was also a huge giveaway.

Marco blocked and dispersed the concentrated mass of fire with his wings, flaring his own azure flames to do so. Two rapid 'thump' sounds caught his attention next. The first being Vista accidentally letting go of the young top-hat wearing blond who landed in an awkward half-sitting position. The second came from Ace landing heavily between the phoenix and the smaller raven-hair, the teen captain's entire body aflame.

Standing straight, the teen turned his head to look at the small pirate behind him—who was loudly growling now instead of the guttural beastly snarls prior to Ace's entrance—before turning to face Marco and his two brothers. The freckled teen let out a growl of his own (much more human-like than the kid's, but displaying just as much dislike) and then Marco was pushing his brothers away from the fire that suddenly raced out from beneath the teen's feet. An odd movement caught his eye and Marco looked over to see the younger blond teen, stumbling as he tried to catch and keep his moving forward, racing _towards_ the damn growing blaze. He tried to catch the pirate's arm or jacket to stop him because those angry flames were _hot_ dammit; the brat was going to be burnt to a crisp! The teen dodged Marco's reaching hand and _ran straight into the blazing fire_. The phoenix heard Izou and Vista gasp off to the side of him (as well as a few others who saw and were voiced their shock and disbelief).

Ace's fires seemed to calm for a moment before flaring back into a seething frenzy. The fire raced outwards from the three figures, speeding along the ground and forcing away anyone who had been trying to get close to them. Marco looked behind the three younger pirates and saw that Jozu had managed to grab Thatch and Haruta and moved them back from the spreading flames. Once it stopped reaching out the fire rose upwards almost ten feet, the heat increasing and making it hard to stand near the edge.

Marco took in the new development. The wall of fire made a rough circle around Ace's location, giving him about twenty or so feet on all sides. The zoan also noted that, unlike the time back on the island where Ace had just made a huge wall of fire extending an easy thirty feet into the air, this blazing perimeter worked differently. The inside of the circle was completely covered in flames with no brown decking to be seen. Those varied between only being a few inches tall to almost going past Ace's knees. Although Marco couldn't smell any of the ship's deck burning, he did hear some of his siblings curse as they got too close to fire and saw the flames flare in response to the pirates' proximity at those locations. Examining the center of the inferno, Marco was reminded of what Thatch had said about those kids he'd heard about so long ago.

Ace could easily pass for being a fiery demon straight from the depths of hell. His eyes were steel embers that felt as if they would burn someone with only a glance. Fire danced and raged over his form, a living cloak that sent out thick tendrils to wave menacingly at his enemies. The orange cowboy hat hung from a chord onto his back, probably indistinguishable from the flames covering Ace. Through the heat's haze it was hard to tell if the fire-user's body was having trouble keeping its human shape, with the hands and parts of the limb dissolving into a flare of fire, or if it was just a mirage conjured by the fire's heat. Marco felt a spike of fear when he noticed that even the two boys behind the young captain were also covered in fire. Looking more closely, it seemed as if the two weren't bothered by the searing fire. A dark air surrounded the three but they seemed to relax slightly in each other's presence. The phoenix frowned as he stared at the picture the three made, reinforcing Thatch's words and the title given to these boys by their own crew.

Ace and his companions, with the negative and dark emotions that could be felt in their presences, gave the impression of three demons who were at home standing in the midst of a raging inferno.

Marco wasn't sure how he felt about that. What kind of life could these three have led to look like that? Shooting a look at his father, he saw that Whitebeard had come to a similar conclusion. The giant man had his eyes narrowed, staring at the three like he looking at a puzzle. A puzzle that had him reaching unpleasant answers or theories as his yellow eyes darkened in concern, worry, and fear for what these boys must have lived through in their short lives.

Pops turned and looked between Marco and the boys a couple times before shooting the First Division Commander a meaningful look. The phoenix raised in a questioning eyebrow in return. His captain gave single nod back before returning to watching the three pirates standing in the field of flames.

* * *

Once passed Ace's barrier Sabo rushed and dived to kneel before their little brother. Placing his hands on either side of Lu's head and shifting into his field of vision, Sabo made it so that Luffy would only see him and Ace's back. It also prevented anyone else from being able to see the golden irises, which were usually almost black when the youngest was in his Human form, and the slit-pupils they showcased. The direct-contact of their skin helped the blond to form a concrete physical bond as tried to break through to Lu using their mental one. Ace shifted back a little and moved his left hand to rest on the back of Sabo's neck, providing support for both his brothers.

Sabo whispered aloud and mentally to his little brother. Trying to soothe him and let him know he wasn't losing his big brothers, they weren't in immediate danger, Ace was right there with them… The blond pushed every bit of love and comfort he could collect from both him and Ace along the quivering thread connecting them to Lu. The little dragon only ever became this scared when he was faced with his greatest (and possibly only) fear: being alone. So Sabo, with Ace supporting him and protecting them, repeated the same message in different forms over and over to their little Light. He kept telling Luffy he wasn't alone.

It took a few minutes until Sabo blew a quiet and relieved sigh, finally breathing easier as he saw Luffy's slitted pupils widen and the bright gold eyes fade back to near black. Dark orbs focused on the sea-blues gazing at him in concern and worry, shifted to land on the back covered in fire in front of the pair, ending with a glazed look at the ground at his feet. The younger's shallow breathing became deeper and the constant growling dwindled to brief bursts. Still shaking and unsteady with exhaustion, Luffy grabbed Sabo's jacket sleeve in one hand then reached to latch onto one of Ace's with his other, wanting proof that he could physically feel proving that his Treasure was still there.

"What happened?" Ace could feel light tremors running through Luffy's body, the younger squeezing his hand whenever they hit. Luffy couldn't pull together enough to give even a rough outline of what had caused his strong reaction. Ace could only sense a confusing array of relief, fear, exhaustion, terror, anger, and panic. They swirled together in a jumbled mess he couldn't make heads or tails of.

"I think…I think Lu was so tired and mentally drained that he had a hallucination-induced waking nightmare that resulted in an extreme anxiety attack," Sabo whispered back. Ace's flames were crackling and roaring with heat so nobody (not even that bird-zoan guy) would likely be able to hear them even if they didn't quite whisper. Sabo and Ace just didn't want to chance it though.

"Um…Meaning?" Sabo sighed and rubbed a hand up and down the arm of the smaller hand clenching his blue coat, watching as another tremor worked through the skinny body.

"It means that Luffy pushed himself too hard and, in his weakened and sleep-deprived state, his mind started shutting down to try and force him to get some sleep. Being Lu, he fought against it and was pretty much half asleep when he saw me captured and didn't see you anywhere at all. The only thing that clearly registered with him was that we were either gone or being taken away and he panicked."

"Which means he attacked anyone close to him because he blamed them for taking us, right?" Ace frowned hearing Sabo's low confirming hum. His mind was being nudged and rubbed against by Luffy's, similar to how cat would bump and rub its head against someone when seeking comfort. The fire-user, who'd lowered his shields once the younger had calmed and reached out to him, responded in kind. "Why is he trembling? I get he's tired and definitely needs to eat, but it's not because of that is it?"

Sabo's eyes darkened. /No. He needs to sleep and eat, yes, but more than that he is fighting against his need to Shift. His body is demanding it but, because he promised not to in front of anyone, he's preventing anything from Changing. ( _Anger_ ) This situation we're in isn't helping either./

"He's also cold." Ace's eyes widened.

"What do you mean he's 'cold'? He hardly ever gets cold! If anything he'd be in danger of getting too hot and that only happened once!" Sabo rolled his eyes at his older sibling's apparent stupidity.

"Lu doesn't have enough energy to regulate his body temperature. He's hardly had anything to eat since you've been gone and he hasn't really slept either. The stress of not being able to contact you just made everything even worse. His body is running on empty and is starting to shut down."

Hearing this, the fire coating Luffy became much warmer as it tried to externally heat his ailing brother. Tendrils snaked out and wrapped themselves around the smaller teen's form, appearing as if they were trying to hug and comfort the little raven-head.

"Oi. You three."

Ace and Sabo shifted their focus to the crackling wall ahead of them as Luffy let out a loud growl. Sensing someone trying to approach his barrier, Ace flared the flames in that section to force the person back. He also increased the heat and had a couple thick tendrils shoot out a few feet and wave about in warning when the pirate didn't step back. Blue fire met the twisting ropes and Ace scowled.

The blue fire touching his flames felt odd. It was preventing Ace's fire from harming the pirate, that was easy enough for him to gather, but left him puzzled over what else he felt through his fire. Sabo, and dimly Luffy, also sensed it through their bond. This weird blue fire was somehow trying to soothe the anger and rage that resided in Ace's flames. An opposing cool to Ace's heat.

Sabo stood and moved to stand at Ace's right, gently nudging Luffy to stand between them while wrapping his left arm around the younger's shoulders. This was their signature pre-battle stance, brothers shoulder to shoulder and ready to face any enemy. Ace on the left. Luffy firmly in the middle. Sabo on the right. It was familiar and comforting, easing some of the brothers' anxiety as they readied themselves for what was likely to be another confrontation.

* * *

Marco could barely make out the boys' moving through the sudden rise of Ace's flames. His own fire leapt to prevent the reaching tentacles of fire that tried to swat at him when he didn't move away. The phoenix was surprised at the sheer anger and hatred he felt in those glowing orange fires. When the orange started to retract after its failed attempt to harm blue chased after and caught it, following until the tendrils completely disappeared back into the wall they came from. He'd tried to emit a sense of calm through his azure fire in hopes of lessening the hostility he sensed in the teen's blaze.

"I want to talk with you three." Orange fire burned hotter and brighter, glowing white in some spots, while also growing thicker and higher. Marco noticed the wall only changed like this where he stood, remaining mostly uniform everywhere else along the perimeter that he could make out.

The roaring fire was too high and thick for him to see through it now, so he couldn't tell exactly what was going on in the center of the fiery circle. His Observation Haki told him that three were still all together and held an air of hurt, distrust, and anger. The older two were easy enough to sense but the youngest was barely there which really worried him. Strawhat had looked to be on the verge of a mental breakdown before Ace's entrance and, though he smelt the fear easing with the freckled raven stood between them, an odd sensation had crept up his spine. Marco's Phoenix had been very unsettled by the younger raven's outburst, telling him it was bad to upset the child. The First Division Commander still couldn't read anything from the youngest's haki and now he couldn't see or smell the brat to get a sense of what his condition was.

He could probably fly up and see over the flames but that would only cause more tension between the Whitebeards and three Spades. Pops wanted to take in Ace and most likely the other two now when he saw _that_ look in his father's gaze. Trying to circumvent Ace's defensive barrier, the line he had drawn that stated how close the Whitebeards could get without being immediately attacked, would only serve to raise tensions further. No. He needed to get the three's permission to approach, anything else would be taken as a sign of aggression in their position.

 _A mocking grin. "Good luck getting Ace to call you 'family'!" Tone sincere and encouraging._ Marco paused in his effort to get the upset trio to talk to him.

 _'Why am I remembering that now yoi?'_ He ran over the scene in his head once. Twice. What was he missing? Going through the memory for a third time the phoenix recalled what he had missed. ' _His eyes. I was so distracted by that stupid grin on his little face I overlooked how the kid stared at me._ ' Marco really wanted to kick himself for that. He was a _bird_ and one of the best at observing small details, yet he somehow managed to forget how the annoying little straw-hat kid looked at him when delivering those words.

Challenge. The brat was actually challenging the Whitebeards to try and get Ace to join their family. _That_ was why he had been unsettled by the bipolar way he'd thought the kid delivered that statement. The words were a challenge, a dare. The tone _was_ genuine in the hope that they would take the challenge, Marco didn't doubt that part. The maddening grin that possessed an air of mocking his father's desire to adopt Ace made more sense to Marco now with the addition of the kid's _look_ that was aimed at him.

The phoenix _really_ wanted to kick himself now for putting it all together.

 _Of course_ the brat doubted their ability to succeed in their goal. He and his family had tried to separate the three and expected everything to go according to Pops' plan (the man had admitted it may take a while due to the young captain's famed hotheadedness and stubborn pride). Sure they hadn't known at the time, just figuring it was more of the Spade crew's well-known crazy antics (the crew, while not close to Ace, had been known to be very loyal to the teen). But with how the two had fought, and with the younger running pell-mell back and forth all morning while shouting about their "stealing Ace", the signs had been broadcasted loud and clear that the original plan was no-way in _hell_ going to work.

Marco fixed his eyes on the angry wall of fire, trying to think of a way to talk to the brats and get them to remain on the ship. ' _Zack had said they were protective of each other…'_

"I promise I have no intentions of harming you, yoi." Marco let some of his flame out and had the blue fire gently touch Ace's fiery wall, hoping the other would be able to sense the commander's sincerity in that statement. "Again, I just wish to talk. You don't even have to come out or let down your barrier. I can come to you if that makes you feel better."

"You can't go in by yourself Marco! Even with your regenerative powers you can still feel the pain of being burned." Marco turned to see Thatch had made it over to him from the other side of the blaze, Haruta right behind him.

"How's your arm yoi?" Thatch looked down at the lightly bleeding limb he was cradling against his chest, pressing down on the wound with his opposite hand.

"Hurts like hell but getting better. Bleeding is finally slowing down." He looked up at the blond with a roguish smirk. "Little brat has a sharp set of chompers on him. And Jozu's right, kid's got a strong kick for someone so damn small."

Marco 'hmmed' and went back to staring at the fire-wall.

Thatch scowled at his brother. "I'm serious Marco. Whatever control Ace may have over his fire is fading. On the way over here there were spots where the fire was burning the deck. You go in there and you risk being turned into a _cooked_ blue chicken."

Marco felt his eye twitch at the stupid joke Thatch threw in. "Why don't we test his supposed control by tossing you over the wall? Might actually fix your hair, yoi."

Widening his eyes in faux shock and betrayal, Thatch exaggeratedly whined with mock hurt, "Marco, my own dear brother, you would be so cruel as to subject me to such a horrible and painful demise?" He grinned before adding on, "Besides, you could use an impromptu haircut more than me. At least I'm not a _bird_ with hair that looks like a bird's nest, get it?"

The phoenix glared at the chef. Then smirked as he threw a small bit of azure flame from his hand at his brother's pompadour and watched as his brother fell backwards onto his butt to avoid getting his hair singed.

' _Idiot, he knows my fire doesn't burn._ '

* * *

Ace didn't want to talk to one of the bastards responsible for causing his baby brother's condition. He just wanted off the damn ship and for them to be left alone. The pirate's fire also unnerved him a little. It seemed to be trying to calm the flames at the wall's edge and prevent them from lashing out. There was also that odd feeling that came to him from where the two fires brushed against each other.

"Maybe we should." Sabo felt Ace's curiosity at the statement so he provided an image of the fire parting to let the other fire-wielding pirate through.

"No! He is not coming in here!" Ace's fire responded to his anger, growing hotter and flicking out at the speaking pirate to try and force the man back again.

* * *

Thatch scrambled back a bit from the reaching ropes of flame, cursing as one almost touched him. "Got any better ideas?"

Marco flared his own fire to push back the orange fires trying to force him away. He again tried to project a sense of calm and peace into his fire as it butted up against Ace's angry flames.

* * *

Sabo looked over at his freckled brother. "Ace, you're getting tired. This technique is still too new and requires too much work to maintain for long right now. _And_ you are also using you're Fire-Cloak, which takes more than enough concentration to use on its own. You _will_ burn yourself out at this rate and _I_ will be forced to deal with your dead-weight as well!"

Ace glared at the spot where he felt those odd flames touching his. "I won't let anyone in! What if he tries something once he's in here? He uses weird flames that seem to have some kind of effect on my own."

"What about Luffy? This standoff is just prolonging his suffering. He needs 'rest' and soon." /If not, we'll be forced to give him permission to Change, in front of all these pirates, just to avoid him hurting himself. He can't fly yet and get us out of the shit storm _that_ would create. /

* * *

The blazing tendrils trying to hit Marco paused for a moment and then retreated back into the wall. The blond commander noticed that the towering flames wavered, the heat coming from them lessening a tad. Taking the opportunity presented to him, he stretched out his hand towards the writhing flames and had his own reach out to brush against the orange fire again.

Trying to see through the flames to where he felt the trio of Spade Pirates were standing, Marco called out, "I will leave whenever you want me to if you let me in. I promise not to use my flames against you three yoi."

The wall wavered more. Flames slowly shrinking in size and intensity.

* * *

Ace turned his head to look Sabo in the eye, feeling the grim resignation the blond had shared with him about their little brother's plight. He lowered his smoldering grey eyes to rest on Luffy. The little dragon was still firmly wedged between the two, holding Ace's hand tightly in his smaller left one with Sabo's own left arm curled tightly around the back of his shoulders. Ace's gaze softened as he noticed how Luffy was leaning into Sabo's side, head resting firmly against the other's chest where he could hear Sabo's heart. Their little brother also had his other hand firmly clenching the back of Sabo's blue coat. Lu's hat was firmly on his head, still a little big on him, and tilted down to help shield his eyes from view.

When he felt another shudder wrack Luffy's body, Ace gave in to Sabo's request with a muttered, "Fine, but I'm torching the bastard's ass if he tries anything."

* * *

Izou walked up to stand as close as he could to Marco in the face of the fire's heat. "You think they heard you?"

Marco was about to reply when the wall lowered until it was just above his head. He turned to Izou and asked, "That answer your question yoi?"

"Thatch is right, you know. You shouldn't go in there alone," the cross-dresser huffed back. Seeing his brother approach the lowered flames, Izou made to follow after him.

The First Division Commander turned to tell his brother that he'd be fine but was interrupted by a set of flames shooting out from Ace's barrier. The twin fires raced along the ground and came together behind Marco, rising until their tips were even with his shoulders. Izou jumped back to avoid being burnt by the fire, shooting a concerned glance at Marco.

He needn't have bothered. The phoenix had reflexively doused his body in his own azure fire as he thought the streams were going to attack him again. At least his flames saved him from some of the heat being let off by Ace's fire.

"Looks like they'll only agree if I go in alone, yoi." Izou shot a disgruntled look at the blond.

Marco made for the wall of fire again, idly noting how the fire surrounding him followed as well but remained a steady few feet away from him. Walking in the lane outlined by the smaller extensions, he stopped once he reached the fire-wall. ' _Am I supposed to just walk through it yoi?'_

* * *

Sabo rubbed Luffy's arm, the younger's growling stopped for the moment, as he glanced over at Ace. "Just let him in already, Hothead."

Ace growled but relented and collapsed the part of the wall directly in front of the other fire-user.

* * *

Marco let out a relieved breath when he saw the flames die out. He quickly stepped through the hole, not wanting to test the obviously short fuse the young captain had on his temper. The flames inside the barrier pulled away a few paces to give him a fire-free place to stand (leaving behind a few scorch marks in the deck). A glance behind showed that the flames separating him from the rest of his family joined with the rest of the flaming barrier. Also cutting off any escape but 'up' from the fire surrounding him. Turning his lazy-eyed gaze forward, he saw that his earlier assessment had been right. Sort of.

The three were standing in the middle of a veritable field of pure fire, no space other than where Marco stood being clear of the flames. At first, he thought the wood under the three's feet was devoid of fire, like with him, but a closer look revealed otherwise. Ace and his two companions were literally standing in the raging fire itself. The other fire-user was also more _part_ of the flames surrounding the four than just being covered in it like Marco had thought earlier. Ace's body seemed more like a glowing, solid flame. The parts the phoenix had seen and believed to be randomly shifting into fire was actually Ace's fiery body giving off small flares.

The division commander turned his eyes onto the forms of Ace's companions and was startled to see they had fire dancing across their bodies as well. It was similar to how he covered himself in a light coating of his Phoenix's fire, except theirs was much more sporadic. The orange flames were almost like a shifting, ratty blanket; thicker in some places while thinner in others and constantly moving about them. Small tendrils of flame came out of the fire beneath them to stroke or wrap about the two often too.

Marco relaxed his frame to give the impression he didn't mean any harm and started towards them at a slow gait. ' _The heat is almost suffocating in here yoi.'_ His eyes narrowed as he examined the flames covering the blond and smaller raven-head. ' _Do those protect them from the heat like mine?'_

* * *

Luffy dimly sensed his brothers' tension the energy to find out what had upset them, he weakly prodded at their minds to ask what had happened. Sabo tried to tell him but all Luffy got was that someone had entered Ace's protective fire.

Why had they come in? How?

Wanting to see who this intruder was Luffy turned his head to look in the direction where he felt Ace and Sabo's focus lay.

Ace was concentrating so hard on controlling his fire and keeping it from burning the ship they stood on—or the pirate belonging to this crew of bastards that wished to speak to them—that he didn't notice how Lu stiffened upon seeing who their 'guest' was.

Sabo had, so he wasn't as startled when their little brother began to growl.

* * *

The only warning Marco had was the threatening growl. Ace's fire surged towards him, growing high as his shoulders and intent on burning him to ash. Marco's own blue flames instinctively reacted to the threat. Projecting a stronger sense of calm, he let the azure fire push against the orange without overpowering it. His Phoenix wanted out to meet the threat but he held it back. Transforming would be seen as a hostile act and would wreck any chance of getting a peaceful talk with the boys.

Lu hazily detected his brothers' reactions to his implied threat. Sabo was gripping his shoulder tighter and preparing to attack the intruder if Luffy sensed any ill-intent from him. Ace had immediately commanded the flames to converge on the Human, keeping him from coming any closer and to remain still. Both were waiting for Lu's final opinion on whether to let the Human continue or try and expel the person from their vicinity.

The Phoenix-zoan pulled his flames back from pushing against the orange fire once it had stopped coming towards him. It still gave off incredible heat (which would have severely burned any normal person) but didn't invade the small space between orange and blue. Marco had the impression that the flames were mostly to keep him from going anywhere, only attacking if he did anything that could be taken as a threat.

Remaining perfectly still, Marco looked over at the three pirates standing side by side about fifteen feet away. The older two pirates had the youngest stationed between them, Ace on the left and the blond on the right.

Ace was glowing and radiating more heat than before, his hands white-hot now. Sabo shifted to put the smaller raven closer to Ace while he adopted a stance that screamed of his willingness to dart across the expanse of fire to attack Marco. Both were alternating glaring daggers at him and sending questioning looks to the kid standing snugly between them. He was a little surprised to see that, without any apparent cues, Sabo and Ace never took their eye off Marco at the same time. One always had a visual fix on him.

 _"For whatever insane reason, Luffy gave your crew permission to try and recruit our captain. That is the_ only _reason I'm even talking to you and not letting the idiots outside turn you into a chicken entrée for those three crazy monsters."_

' _The Spade Pirates see Luffy as a captain because the two_ actual _captains held him in high regard.'_ Marco looked over the trio of young pirates, taking extra notice of the way the older two were glancing at the smaller growling one. _'If I want a chance at talking with the "Monster Trio" I guess I need the okay of the little kid, yoi.'_

Luffy, mind locked in a haze of exhaustion, continued growling. He knew this Human. _This_ was the one who had taken Ace away from him and Sabo! He pulled his lips back to better expose his slightly sharpened teeth and then increased the volume of his growls. _This_ was the one who had tried to keep him from getting to Sabo!

Marco felt his chances slipping away as he watched the kid became more openly hostile to his presence. The two captains responded in kind, Ace inching the flames closer and Sabo crouching a little (ready to jump and attack or defend on Luffy's say-so).

Not wanting to call it quits just yet, he slowly raised hands with the palms facing the teens (Luffy growling louder at the movement). With sky-blue eyes focusing completely on the youngest "captain", Marco took a calming breath and called out, "I'm serious, yoi. I only want to talk, nothing else."

Ace and Sabo noticed Luffy's growls quieting, fuzzy memories breaking through the fog of the younger's mind. He blearily remembered the reason this Human gave him for its crew's crime of stealing his Treasure. He stopped baring his teeth as another memory gradually surfaced. When Sabo had been taken this Human had seemed to realize why Luffy was upset and tried to get the other Humans to give Sabo back.

Marco waited, hands still up by his shoulders in a sign of surrender, as Strawhat finally stopped growling. A considering frown pulling at Luffy's lips, the small pirate stared at him.

Sabo felt a brief pang of relief when Luffy turned away from the tall pirate with blue flames and gently nuzzled his head against the blond's chest. Ace called back the flames and widened the circle surrounding Marco. As the commander started forward again, Sabo noted that the stronger man was keeping up his air submission and peace (he'd only lowered his hands a little but still kept them palm-out and open).

' _Probably the only reason Luffy is letting him close right now._ ' Sabo had gotten vague impressions from his tired brother, but nothing he could clearly discern.

Ace and Sabo knew that even as tired as Luffy was, he would still try to attack the commander if the man did anything that further upset the dragon. The two brothers were just thankful that Luffy recognized the positioning of the guy's hands as one of submission. It would be better if the pirate wasn't staring at them and looked at the ground instead as he approached, but it was fine for now.

When Marco came within about ten feet of the brothers, Ace flared the flames directly in front of the man in warning. Taking the hint, the commander stopped where he was and lowered his hands.

"Thanks for letting me in yoi." The two older brothers glared at the pirate. Luffy tilted his head to fix an eye on the bird-man but still kept his face smooshed against Sabo's chest.

"Just say whatever it is and leave," Ace growled.

"Be nice, Ace." Sabo side-glanced at his older brother before returning his focus to the commander, "He can fly. He could have easily gone over your wall but instead asked for permission. And careful, you're starting to burn the wood."

/( _Anger_ ) I don't like him. His blue fire is weird too./

/Let's just see what he wants. Lu isn't completely against it and has said that this person is 'Good'./

Marco watched as Ace looked over at the blond then down at the little shrimp. The younger captain's steel eyes seemed to soften when they caught the shiver that ran through the smaller raven. When Ace turned his angry gaze back onto the commander, Marco saw more tendrils of orange fire arch up and wrap about the straw hatted kid's frame.

"My Captain is sorry things came to this. It was never his intent for things to go as far as they did. He also wishes to speak with you three, yoi."

Despite his face not changing, Ace's growing temper showed through the heat and increased intensity of his flames. Luffy gripping his hand tighter while burrowing a little more into Sabo's side calmed him some.

"I don't believe right now is a good time," Sabo replied stiffly, pulling Luffy a little closer to him.

Marco noticed the movement. Glancing at the two captains briefly, he looked down at the child between them and asked, "How's he doing yoi?" Seeing the older two stiffen, he added, "It's just that he didn't look very good earlier and many of us, Pops included, are worried about him."

While Ace remained tense, Sabo loosened his stance and rubbed Lu's arm gently. "He'll be fine with some sleep and food."

"Since it's getting late you are welcome to stay here and rest yoi. We have a few rooms—" Luffy's growling cut the commander off.

Ace and Sabo tightened their grip on Luffy, sending mental assurances that they wouldn't be split up again. Marco raised his hands to placate the glares boring into him.

"We have no intention of splitting you guys up again. Promise yoi." He waited until the growling stopped to continue. "It's just that, other than the ship's infirmary, there aren't many rooms that can fit three beds."

"We can sleep on our own ship once you bastards let us go!"

Marco raised an eyebrow at the hothead. "Your ship will take a little while to get to us and your friend here looks about ready to fall asleep any moment, yoi. We also have a better infirmary and set of doctors and nurses that can look the little one over." Luffy stiffened at that last bit, letting out a small growl to voice his displeasure.

"You—!"

"Ace." Both fire-users turned towards the blond. "Look at Luffy." /He _needs_ to rest. Now! /

Ace scowled but silently agreed with his brother. Luffy looked terrible and him being difficult was just making things harder on his baby brother.

Marco merely watched as the two co-captains seemed to communicate something silently before him. He returned his attention to the conversation when the blond captain began to address him.

"We thank you for your crew's desire to check on Luffy's health but I'm afraid we'll have to decline. He isn't overly fond of being touched by people he doesn't know and is more likely to bite anyone who gets too close to him right now."

Marco didn't want to admit that the blond's polite tone and smile sent a mild shiver down his spine. He figured it was probably because the other's eyes were a complete counterpoint to Ace's. While Ace had eyes that burned like molten steel in their fury, Sabo's were dark seas and absolutely glacial.

' _And their crew is more scared of angering the little shrimp? This doesn't feel like the true face of their anger. How can the little wild one top them at their angriest yoi?'_

"As for the rooms…I think we'll accept that offer. You don't have to worry about fitting three beds into one either. One bed and some extra blankets and pillows would be fine for us." Sabo looked down at Lu, a contemplating look on his face. Rubbing the younger's shoulders, he looked back up at the commander and smiled as he said, "And, it would be greatly appreciated if the room is a little spacious. Luffy sometimes gets a little claustrophobic when he's stressed. The extra space will help calm him down enough to sleep."

Giving a slow nod, the First Division Commander wondered at that last part. Something wasn't completely adding up. The statement sounded more like an excuse with bits of truth in it. A firmer nod to show his agreement to the request had the two young captains relaxing their tense shoulders.

"However," the three immediately fixed wary and distrustful eyes on the commander, "our Head Nurse, Bay, would probably like to take a look at you, Ace. Make sure you haven't worsened or opened any of your wounds yoi."

Ace scoffed at the older pirate. Marco saw a dark look quickly pass over all three boys as Ace responded, "I'll be fine. Been through worse and survived so this is nothing. I don't need your crappy nurses checking me over."

"Fine yoi." Marco looked at the expanse of flames surrounding them, noting that the smell of wood burning was a little stronger than before. "Since we've come to an agreement," he turned back to Ace, "would you mind dropping the flames? They're starting to cause damage and it looks like this technique is very tiring for you, yoi."

Ace was about to argue but Sabo was quick to cut him off. /Not now, Ace! Just do as the guy says and drop your Fire-Field. You can keep the fire around us going if you want but this technique _is_ getting to be too much for you. /

Crossing his arms, switching Lu's hand to his left, Ace grumpily complied with Marco's request.

Watching the flames slowly fade from around them, Marco's attention was drawn back to the boys when he heard Sabo clear his throat.

"Yes, yoi?" The commander saw the flames pause in their retreat.

Sabo glanced at his brothers before fixing his sea-blue eyes on the commander's lighter ones. "We'd also appreciate it if just _you_ led us to our room."

Folding his arms, Marco swept an assessing look over the three Spade Pirates. "Why only me, yoi?" He had to admit, if this was them trying a last ditch attempt to escape it was a pretty desperate one.

"We aren't planning anything." Marco raised an eyebrow at the blond, indicating he was listening and waiting for Sabo to continue. "Lu can't be around a lot of people right now without becoming even more tense and stressed. Plus, a twitchy Luffy makes for a very flame-happy Ace." Ace let a dark grin slide onto his face. "The less people around the better. Unless you don't mind sending a few new crewmembers to the infirmary for getting torched, that is."

Marco studied the blond captain's face. A glance at the grin Ace bore and how he was firmly holding the youngest pirate's hand in his fiery grip seemed to confirm Sabo's words. ' _He is completely serious yoi.'_ He fought the urge to sigh as he thought, ' _And Pops wants to take in all_ three _of these brats.'_

Sabo and Ace watched the older pirate contemplate what Sabo told him.

/What if he doesn't listen? For all we know he could have us escorted to the brig!/

/Knock it off, Ace. We'll make him listen. And if he doesn't…well…at least he'll see we weren't lying about what will happen./ Ace just snorted when he heard that.

Hearing the snort, Marco returned his attention to the two pirates. Keeping up the lazy expression on his face, the commander covertly analyzed the three teens. He'd noticed something odd about them since the conversation began.

Putting his theories to the side, he asked them, "And why is…Luffy?" Sabo nodded to confirm he was correct about the name. "Why is Luffy...'okay' I guess...with me? Wouldn't it be fine so long as there was only one person escorting you, yoi?"

Ace glanced at Sabo as he felt his younger brother's indecision. He was unsure as well. Lu was great at reading people, telling them who was 'Good' and who was 'Bad'. But he was so tired Ace was concerned he might have not gotten a clear read on the guy with weird blond hair (seriously, did someone pull a joke on the guy when they did his hair?).

Past experience has made Luffy 'look' at others more deeply when trying to assess them and also forced on the three brothers a new motto: "'Good' people can do bad things and 'Bad' people can do good things." Essentially, take everything with some salt. Lu can read people like Sabo does books and is never wrong, but his ability works best the longer he is around someone.

A nudge against both their minds drew Sabo and Ace's eyes down to Lu.

Marco simply watches as Sabo seems to think over his answer, glancing at his slightly taller "co-captain" as if seeking approval for something. Both look down at the younger—' _Luffy; at least I have two names confirmed, now. Crew must be telling the truth about them, which means the blond one_ is _actually Sabo.'_ —who turns to gaze up at first Sabo and then Ace, before laying his head back on Sabo's chest with his face partially hidden by the straw-hat on his head.

Getting Luffy's assurance about the bird-man, Sabo and Ace turned their attention back on the commander. Ace decided to speak instead of his brother this time.

"I don't know why, but Lu seems to think you're 'okay'." Sabo shot Ace a look saying he was unimpressed with his older brother. Ace just shrugged his shoulders.

"He said that I was 'okay'." Sabo and Ace nod. "What does _that_ mean yoi?"

Seeing Ace about to open his mouth, and sensing his brother's foul mood worsening, Sabo quickly told the other to "Shut up." Turning to the obviously confused commander, Sabo explained, "Luffy is good at judging people. Since he already told us you were a 'Good' person it means that we can trust you, to a certain extent at least. We don't know about anyone else though and Luffy won't let others near him with how he is right now."

Marco glanced between the two, mildly incredulous at this odd answer.

"So what you're saying is, because he," pointing a finger at the small straw-hatted kid, Marco shoots the other two a look of slight disbelief, "says I am…'Good' yoi…It means he, and also you two, trust me enough to get close to you guys." Both teens nod, looking for all the world like this makes complete sense and Marco is some kind of idiot. "And I'm guessing that because of how he is now neither of you two will let anyone else close enough for him to 'judge' them. Right yoi?" Again, both young captains nod their heads. Marco, bracing one hand on his hip, closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose while quietly muttering, "Of course it is. Fine, I'll take you to your room. Just let me speak to a few people, yoi."

Hearing Marco's agreement, Ace completed the extinguishing of his Field and also dropped his Cloak. Ace still kept a small ring of fire around him and his little brothers though, just in case someone tried to rush them.

Marco, seeing his brothers and fellow commanders about to try and rush in to confront the four, quickly motioned for them to stay back. From how the two captains were glaring around at his siblings, he had no doubt Ace would be more than happy to light up those who got too close to them. After glancing around, he made a beeline for Whitebeard to let him know what had been decided.

* * *

"So what did you learn about our 'guests', Marco?"

"We most definitely can't adopt Ace without the other two, yoi."Whitebeard laughed at hearing Marco's tone.

The two, along with Izou, Thatch, and Vista, were in Whitebeard's room. The other commanders were directing cleanup of the deck (Ace's fire had left scorch and burn marks in several places) and keeping an eye on the unhappy trio. Whitebeard had seen the look on Marco's face and called for the other three commanders to speak privately about what he had discovered.

"It's great you weren't turned into a chicken dinner," Marco's eye twitched at the stupid joke he wasn't in the mood for, "but what took you so long? You were in there _forever_ and we had no idea of what was going on except that Ace's 'Great Barrier of Flame' would flare and act out every now and then."

"Quit being so dramatic you idiot, he wasn't in there that long."

"Please stop you two. Let's hear what our brother has to say," Vista cut in.

Crossing his arms and sporting a troubled face, Marco answered, "A lot and nothing."

"What does that mean? Ow! What was that for, Izou?"

"Shut up, Thatch, or I'll hit you again. You were saying Marco?"

"First, their crew was telling the truth about their names after all yoi. Ace is the one captain, Luffy is the youngest, and I guess the other captain would be called Sabo. The three never actually said the blond's name or gave it, but if the crew told the truth then he would be Sabo.

"I didn't actually talk with them for long; not at all with the youngest, Luffy. He's sort of part of the reason I was in there so long yoi. As soon as he saw me, the shrimp started growling and Ace wouldn't let me go anywhere. Figured if I flew or tried to fight against them then we'd lose any chance at getting them to talk, so I waited. Luffy eventually stopped growling and went back to being silent, yoi. He watched me, don't think he took his eyes off me except for once the entire time I was in there, but never said a word."

"Before that, what did they tell you directly son?" Marco flicked his eyes up at his father.

"They agreed to staying in a room we provide so Luffy can rest yoi."

"One room? Do we have any rooms besides the infirmary where we can fit three beds?" Marco felt the corners of his mouth pull into a slight smile at Vista's question.

"Apparently, they only need _one_ bed and some extra pillows and blankets. Sabo also asked for a slightly larger room because the youngest gets somewhat claustrophobic when he's stressed." Marco turned to look up at Whitebeard, "Can we put them in one of the larger guest rooms, yoi?"

"That is fine. I am assuming the idea of three separate rooms was never going to work?"

"Flat out denied the possibility of splitting up once they thought I was hinting at that. That was probably one of the times Ace's fire-wall acted out, yoi. Ace denied the offer of staying onboard to rest and was adamant about leaving at first. Sabo talked him down using Luffy's bad health and got Ace to grudgingly agree in the end."

"That's right! How—Seriously, Izou stop it!—how is the little kid? How is he doing? Did you tell them they should go see Bay?"

Marco shook his head. "Wouldn't hear of it, yoi. Kid stiffened up as soon as I mentioned the idea of going to the infirmary and the other two refused to even consider it. Said Luffy wouldn't let anyone near him with the state he's in either, yoi." He thought back to the look that had come over all three pirates after asking about Ace at least going.

Whitebeard, seeing Marco's expression and sensing his unease, asked, "What else did they say?"

Looking up at his father, reading the concern he found there, Marco answered, "Nothing good yoi." He glanced around at his brothers before continuing with, "I said that Ace should get checked out, make sure he didn't worsen any of his injuries. Brat just scoffed and said he'd be fine, yoi. All three suddenly had this heavy feeling around them when Ace added that he had been injured much worse and survived."

Everyone's expressions darkened at hearing this. Whitebeard was wondering if some, or possibly most, of the anger and darkness he sensed in the young captain (aka 'soon-to-be-son') was a result of what had befallen the three youngsters. To hear that all three had experienced something unpleasant in their past left a bad taste in his mouth.

"There was one other thing they mentioned yoi." All eyes focused on the First Division Commander. "When they are taken to their room, they want only me to be there escort. No one else is to come with yoi."

"Do those brats want to try and make one last escape? Jump you or something when you're alone with them?"

"Let's not be so hasty, Izou. I am sure they weren't thinking of something like that. For one, the smallest is too sick to move about judging from what I saw earlier. He looked about ready to collapse. For another, with one of the others carrying him it would be harder for them to fight or escape."

"You're right Vista. Oh, Thatch-yoi," the Fourth looked at his brother curiously, "I want to test something out. Are you planning on making dinner soon?"

"Yeah…When we're done with this." He gave a guarded look as he asked warily, "Why? Is this about last week with the feathers? Because that was totally Haruta!"

"Oh, so you were the one who turned the First Division into colorful bird-people?"

"I said it wasn't me, Vista!"

"Not not now, my sons. Marco, continue please." Turning from glaring at Thatch to face Whitebeard, Marco cleared his face and nodded.

"Right, yoi. As I said, they only want me to accompany them. The reason Sabo and Ace gave me was that they trusted me a little and completely distrust everyone else."

"How does that work? As I recall, that little wild child hated you as much as he hated Thatch. The blond, Sabo, wasn't very happy with any of us either. He even tried for a couple of cheap and dirty hits on Vista and I."

"Let's not forget how our soon-to-be-hotheaded-brother came storming out."

"Those were some of my concerns too, yoi. What the two Spade Captains told me was that Luffy had said I was a 'Good person', which somehow translated to mean they could trust me to some extent."

A confused silence met this statement. Thatch decided to be the one to ask the question everyone else was thinking. "I'm sorry, but what did the little birdies tell the big blue birdy?"

"Thatch! One more stupid joke from you today and I swear I will help Marco restyle your to a nice bald look!"

"Did they mention why the little one thought you were a 'good' person, Marco?"

"Eventually, yes yoi. They were a little uneasy about doing so, though, and I think they only told me half what the truth is. Sabo said that 'Luffy is good at judging people'. Since he believed me to be 'Good', Luffy let me come close to them without too much fuss, yoi. If anyone else does while Luffy is like this, the older two will attack to keep them away."

"And you want your brother, Thatch, to come with you four because?"

Marco glanced at Thatch before turning his head to face his father. "Ace and Sabo seem to believe that Luffy won't allow anyone else close enough to be able to 'judge' them, yoi. I want to test how truthful they're being."

Whitebeard nodded his okay, ignoring Thatch's grumbling. Refocusing on his eldest son, he asked his other pressing question. "Did they happen to say how they were related to each other?" Marco shook his head.

"No, they didn't yoi." He paused for a couple seconds, trying to think of how best to describe what he'd seen to his father and brothers. "Based on what I saw, how they acted, it is obvious that they have been together a long time. Thatch, you said that those kids in your story were called the Demon Trio, right yoi?" Thatch nodded at his brother, urging him to go on. "When I stepped through Ace's barrier, I couldn't help but think that name fit them. They stood in the middle of a field of fire, with flames wrapped around each of them. They definitely had the look of being a set of so-called 'demons', yoi."

Izou took in the troubled expression on his blond brother's face. "What's wrong Marco?"

"They…" He turned to look at each of his brothers. Trying again, the phoenix said, "They looked like they were prepared and expecting to face the entire world. Like they only had each other, yoi. The way they stood and talked was as if they believed they couldn't trust anyone but each other."

Whitebeard frowned at hearing this. He'd wanted to isolate Ace to force the kid into coming out of his shell of darkness and hatred. If Marco was right about what the way these three boys looked at the world, then Ace and the other two were already almost completely isolated from everything. It seems that him trying to take Ace alone had only served to strip the angry teen of the only comfort he had. Their intel had told them that Ace was a loner but that clearly wasn't the case, seeing the truth being revealed to them over the past day.

"Sorry, Pops, but I need to get going yoi. Ace and Sabo made it clear they were more than happy to light anyone who comes too close on fire, and some of our crew are a little too curious for their own good. I'll see if I can find out anything else from them and report back later." Heading for the door, Marco called out, "Let's go Thatch yoi."

"Huh? Wait, Marco, didn't you just say that _they_ said they were going to barbecue anyone who got close? I'm not fire-proof like you, Mr. Blue Chicken! Marco? Marco!"

* * *

Marco, Thatch in tow, approached the scene with an air of exasperation mixed in with his normally bored expression.

Ace (now wearing his bold orange hat) had Luffy on his back, the smaller pirate resting his head on the teen's right shoulder and hiding his face in Ace's neck. Luffy's arms were tucked between his chest and big brother's back, hands gripping onto the yellow shirt. The kid's straw-hat was hanging down on his back from a thin chord. Sabo stood to the two's right, slightly behind Ace, with his hand rubbing comforting circles on Luffy's back.

Seeing Ace's flames wrapping around the other two, despite Marco's warning him about it, still shocked Thatch. A couple strands of fire extended across the small space between the two co-captains to circle around Sabo's chest and shoulders. Luffy, on the other hand, was covered in them. To Thatch and Marco it was as if somebody had wrapped the shrimp in a thin blanket of flame. The top-hatted blond and straw-hatted raven also seemed completely comfortable with the idea, like this was completely normal.

' _That might actually be true for these three, yoi.'_

Ace's ring of fire (flames only rising a foot off the ground this time) had expanded from only a few feet, when Marco left to talk to Pops, to almost eight in diameter. Luffy was growling nonstop, although much quieter and sounding extremely tired, with both older Spade Captains shooting dark looks at the pirates around them.

Said pirates were grouped around the trio. They must have been much closer at some point because several were looking singed and others were holding their butts or heads. Marco directed the milling crowd of siblings to get back to work and to leave their 'guests' alone.

Thatch just kept glancing at the damage caused by Ace's fire, to the teen in question, then back to his handiwork in mild concern and apprehension. ' _Marco wants me to get close to them while Ace does_ that _? What if he sets_ my _precious hair on fire!?'_

The phoenix waited until his brothers had dispersed and Luffy stopped growling before approaching the three. Thatch stayed back; curious as he was about the three (and worried about the small one on Ace's back) he didn't want to risk being burned by the touchy trio. It was safer to wait for Marco to say whether he could come over or not.

Drawing close to the edge of Ace's fire, Marco asked, "Was all that really necessary, yoi?"

Ace scowled and looked away from the man, only to land on the form standing several feet behind the commander. There was a yellow piece of cloth tied around one of the man's arms where his white shirt was torn and bloody.

' _Bastard's probably one of those who upset Lu and got too close.'_ His scowl deepened and he tightened his hands clasped together behind his back, squeezing Luffy's thighs closer to Ace's body.

Sabo also noticed the new person, recognizing him as the one Luffy had bitten. Still staring at the pompadour man, Sabo answered lightly, "They upset Luffy. We told them to get back and when they didn't listen to our first warning we simply gave them some incentive."

"Uh-huuh." Marco looked at each of the boys for a couple seconds before trying to introduce the Fourth Division Commander. "Before we go to your room, I wanted to introduce someone to you, yoi."

Luffy finally realized that someone else was near the brothers, the changing breeze wafting over the scent of fresh blood. He frowned against Ace's neck as he tried to recall why this blood smelled familiar. A hazy memory of hands trying to pin him down drifted across his thoughts.

Thatch had only taken two steps before he saw the small raven-haired kid move to look at him. About to take a third step, Luffy lifted his head from Ace's shoulder as recognition seeped into the tired dark orbs and promptly started growling. Again. The chef stopped his advance, worried about aggravating the sickly child and that the now tense and glaring older teens would attack him.

' _I am going to prank Marco_ so bad _if this goes south and I lose my hair!'_ Thatch shot a glare at the stupid fire-chicken studying the three younger pirates. The blond commander threw him a veiled look of 'just do it already yoi'. ' _Stupid bird and his stupid ideas.'_

Marco watched his brother slowly raise his hands to shoulder-height with the palms splayed out facing the teens. Shooting a last this-better-work-or-you're-going-to-regret-it look at the Phoenix-zoan, Thatch turned his gaze to focus on the wood planks at his feet. Luffy's growling continued for several heartbeats before gradually stopping.

Ace and Sabo were extremely suspicious and wary of the two commanders now. Sabo felt that it was the taller man with weird hair who had given the white-clothed pirate instructions of how to act. Ace was tensed and ready to summon some fire to torch the large man. Luffy was quiet now but both brothers felt how tense and nervous he was, vague impressions of being held down coming across the mental link to them.

The First Division Commander surreptitiously watched the trio, noting the odd way Ace and Sabo stiffened and looked at the ascot tied to Thatch's arm in-sync. Luffy lowered his head back down to rest on the warm shoulder, eyeing both commanders.

Hearing no more growls, and darting a look at the uneasy pirate trio, Thatch took a slow step forward and paused. The wild kid was watching and tracking every move the Fourth Division Commander made, though it was obvious the brat was on the verge of passing-out. Seeing no sign of rejection (ignoring the unhappy and suspicious eyes of the older two teens boring into Thatch and Marco) the chef walked at a slow and casual pace over to the four. When Luffy began showing signs of nervousness and threw glances at Marco, Thatch slowed down some more while lowering his eyes and raising his hands a little higher. Moving his injured arm hurt but he was willing to suffer some discomfort if it helped keep the small one from becoming more upset.

Luffy and his brothers watched as the injured man drew even with Marco on the other side of Ace's ring of fire. Ace shifted his brother to get a better and more comfortable hold of him, making it easier for the younger to rest his head and still keep an eye on the two enemy pirates. Sabo watched the broader pirate shoot an anxious glance at Marco, lowering his hands to his side after the brothers made no move against them.

"This is Fourth Division Commander Thatch. He's also the Head Chef on this ship, yoi." Luffy kept staring at Thatch. Ace and Sabo glanced from one commander to the other with obvious wariness, a guarded look on their faces.

"I'm guessing you're one of the bastards who made Luffy so upset," Ace said, aiming a knowing look at Thatch's injury while he glared at the larger pirate.

Before Thatch could reply to Ace's comment, Sabo warily asked Marco, "What happened to our earlier agreement?"

Thatch glanced between the four pirates. Marco looked to be trying to think of something but was also making very discreet glances at the straw-hat kid. The captain pair were obviously on edge—not that he could blame them, it was understandable they be distrusting of those who'd held them captive—and their younger comrade was still staring at him.

Sabo noticed the tiny shifts Marco's eye made. They were subtle but Sabo was used to reading other people's body language and movements. It unnerved him that the focus of Marco's attention was his little brother. Lu said this was a 'Good' person, and the man didn't seem to have any hostile intent, so Sabo held off on alerting Ace.

Ace glowered at the two commanders. Taking a step back he growled, "Face it, Sabo. He lied. Bastard just wanted us to let our guard down." When Ace went to say more Luffy flexed his hands, tightening their grip on Ace's shirt, while keeping his eyes locked onto the one he'd bitten. Ace let out a huff but went quiet.

With an anxious expression and wanting to explain his presence himself, Thatch took a hasty step forward. Marco stiffened at his brother's sudden movement, knowing that it could botch his chances of getting more information out of the three Spades. He was already testing their shaky trust with Thatch's presence alone.

Thankfully, Thatch caught himself before Ace could roast him after flaring the ring's flames. Raising his hands again in an effort to show he meant no harm Thatch cried, "Sorry, sorry! Didn't mean to startle you guys, honest!" He winced at the reaction of the three boys. Luffy was growling again and the other two had taken more defensive positions, completely on-guard and glaring at the two Whitebeards. "I just wanted to say that Marco here brought me to help." Marco looked askance at his brother then back ahead to see the trio's reaction.

Luffy stopped growling. He looked from Marco to Thatch a couple times before settling down, relaxing more against Ace while continuing his tired observation. Thatch took this, and the other two's silence, as a sign that he could continue.

"Since I'm a chef it's my job to feed people, yeah? With all this running around and excitement we figured you guys might be hungry and want something to eat. I was also to be used as an extra set of hands to help carry some blankets and pillows that you asked for."

Marco nodded to confirm Thatch's story. It wasn't the complete truth, but definitely part of the reason he'd asked for the man to come with him.

Sabo looked at the two commanders warily. The two captains doubted that was they were being given the whole reason for Thatch's presence. The firebird was up to something, but the brothers were too tired and drained at the moment to clearly decipher the man's motives.

Sabo nudged at Ace. /What do you think? Should we trust them?/

Ace switched from glaring at the commanders to giving a concerned look at Luffy. /Obviously not. But Lu needs to sleep and Shift right? I hate it but we have no choice but go along with them for now./

/….Go….trust okay….. ( _Bird glowing with blue fire_ )….Good./ After sharing that with his brothers, Luffy tucked his face back into the crook of Ace's neck.

Sabo glanced at his baby brother then looked over at the commanders. "Fine. None of us are hungry now, but perhaps we'll take you up on that offer later. For now, we would prefer to get Luffy somewhere he can rest." Thatch was visibly dejected at the other's refusal.

Knowing Luffy hadn't been eating well and now being told he couldn't do his job as a chef and feed the kid stung. Distracted, he didn't notice how Marco narrowed his eyes at the corners while giving the brothers a searching look.

"Okay then. I'll show you where you can rest, yoi." Marco shot a glance at the fire near his feet. "First, though, please extinguish that. We already have enough clean up thanks to you three, we don't need more yoi."

Ace grudgingly cancelled his little fire-ring after Sabo nudged him in the side and with a pointed look. A small thread of amusement from Luffy had both brothers forming a small grin. Sabo gestured for Marco to take the lead. Ace made to follow the blue fire-user but stopped once he realized Thatch meant to follow behind them.

Sensing Ace and Sabo not following after him, Marco turned to see the brothers glaring at Thatch. Guessing what the problem likely was Marco motioned for the commander to walk next to him. Ace continued following with Sabo right behind him.

* * *

"So what's with all these blankets and pillows? I get that since there're three of you and just the one bed someone might get the floor….But do you really need _six_ pillows and _eight_ big blankets? I'm pretty certain there's already a spare set in the guest room you're using."

"Yes, Mr. Chef, we need them. Luffy and Ace have issues with sharing." Marco caught Thatch's confused and questioning look at that statement.

"Don't act like you're any better Sabo! I've seen you stealing pillows from Lu in the middle of the night."

"He stole them first and he hoards them. You steal most of the damn blankets. Between the two of you, I get left with nothing!"

Looking over at the First Division Commander, Thatch saw both the man's thin eyebrows almost touching his hairline. Seriously, what was the relationship between these three kids? From the way they talk it's obvious they must at least share the same room, unless they sneak into each other's rooms to steal bed items.

During the trip to collect the pillows and blankets (Thatch being subjected to playing the part of a pack-mule) the two commanders had been trying to get the boys to talk to them. Marco had purposely taken a longer route to get the extra bed items and leading the Spade trio to the room he had picked for them. Thatch had tried to lag behind in the beginning so he could get a closer look at Luffy (he really was worried about the kid and so was Marco) but whenever he got within six feet of Ace the kid would let out a little growl. Ace, hearing the growl, would immediately attempt to set Thatch on fire until the man ran back up by Marco. By his expression alone, both commanders also bet that Sabo was trying to conjure daggers into existence to throw at the Fourth Commander. After the sixth time, Marco got fed up with his brother's antics and told Thatch to stop harassing the teens unless he "wanted to be barbecued by the twitchy flame."

Gradually, the boys loosened up enough to make polite conversation (Sabo) or to at least grunt in acknowledgment of a statement (Ace). Sometimes, before answering a question, the co-captains would get an odd look in their eye or simultaneously glance at the small pirate on Ace's back. Thatch could totally relate to Marco's statement about the conversation he'd had with the trio during Ace's inferno stunt. They were learning a lot and yet nothing at all from these three.

Once they had started answering questions relatively consistently, Thatch, seeing the fire still wrapped about the two non-fire-users, asked if they were ever worried about being burned by Ace's flames. Marco had given more attention to the conversation at this point, curious about the reason behind the flames himself. The boys had just looked at the two older pirates like they were the stupidest people who just asked the equally stupidest question of all time.

Wearing expressions of extreme confusion, Sabo and Ace asked simultaneously, "Why would we/they get burned?"

After another minute of awkward and confused silence, the two younger pirates randomly grinned and darted fond looks at the small raven resting on Ace's back. The commanders decided to drop the topic of Ace's flames and the five resumed the trek to the guest room.

For some reason, after that botched topic the boys were more tolerant of Thatch's presence. He and Marco discovered this after Thatch unknowingly slowed down to talk a little better with Sabo. Ace had sent a lick of flame at the man, singeing the butt of his pants and keeping a small flame going there, as the teen grouchily requested (demanded) the "loud idiot to get moving". When Thatch threw back the claim he wasn't an idiot and added an exaggerated pout, the two teens shared a knowing look before turning back to the man. Marco, finding the group lagging behind again, slowed down and turned back to see what Thatch was up in arms over. He didn't even bother to keep the amused grin off his face.

Sabo and Ace wore an expression similar to one a saint might wear when trying to explain the world doesn't end at the horizon to an intellectually inept person. Except these two also had an evil glint in their eyes and shit-eating smirks. Sabo asked Ace if smart individuals walk around with a hole in their pants. Ace responded with a no and added that he _did_ know "only idiots walk around with their ass on fire." Thatch looked very confused until he caught the scent of something burning. Realization struck him pretty damn fast at that point.

Luffy turned his head to stare at the chef running up and down the hall screaming about being in danger of "losing his jewels". Marco saw the kid tilt back into Ace's neck and mouth something before going back to largely ignoring them. Ace chuckled and leaned over to Sabo to whisper whatever the smaller boy had said to him, causing the blond to laugh as well. Sabo got Ace to extinguish the mini-fire and Marco smacked Thatch upside the head (lightly) the next time the man went screaming by him.

The troupe went back to walking and it was then Thatch realized how close he'd gotten to the fire teen without the straw-hat kid growling at him. Marco noticed as well and dropped back a little closer to the trio to see if the same applied to him. The teen captains tensed while Luffy peeked out at him and Thatch before the kid resumed ignoring them; the two slowly relaxed and continued talking over the next couple minutes.

Thatch had noticed Luffy whisper something when he'd been on fire earlier and asked the captain duo what he'd said.

Sabo smirked as he said, "Lu told Ace that you were kind of smart for an 'idiot'." The chef looked at his brother before he shot a questioning glance at the duo following them.

Full-out grinning at the commander's implied question, the top-hated blond told the Whitebeards why the statement was so funny. Sabo explained that since Ace had described 'idiots' as people who go about with their butts on fire, Luffy had been surprised Thatch knew Ace was referring to the commander when the teen had demanded for a "loud idiot to get moving". Luffy had also been surprised at the commander's obedience towards Ace. Marco was quick to stifle a laugh while Thatch just spluttered at the laughing co-captains.

' _I just got insulted_ twice _-_ _over in one sentence by a kid who's basically sleeping_ ,' Thatch thought.

They were getting close to the room the three would be using to rest in when Thatch had broached the subject of the quantity of pillows and blankets the two pirates had requested. Which led to the odd revelation of the three's apparent tendency to steal each other's blankets and pillows on what sounded to be a regular basis.

Seeing as their guard was lowered even more if they were willing to divulge this information (or were so tired they just didn't care), Marco thought now might be the best time to try and get a little piece of information that had been bugging him. Putting on an air of disinterest, the phoenix nonchalantly asked, "So, how are you three related to each other yoi?"

Ace and Sabo immediately came to a halt, Ace tightening his hold on Luffy while his flames grew a little larger and moved a touch erratically. Luffy raised his head up and swiveled half-lidded dark eyes between his companions and Marco and Thatch.

The latter commander shot concerned looks at the trio and a puzzled but slightly irritated one at his blond brother.

' _And we finally got them cozy enough to talk with us. Now Marco makes them to clam up by trying to go too far._ ' Yes, Thatch would admit he was curious about their relationship (especially with the talk of pillow/blanket stealing), but he thought would be topic best left until _after_ the three had gotten some sleep and food in them.

Shrugging his shoulders, Marco turned around and walked for another few paces until he stopped outside a door down the hall. Opening it and checking inside to see that it hadn't been turned into a storage room by one of his brothers, the blond motioned the others forward. Thatch had to go first as the teens still hadn't allowed him to walk behind them. As they drew even the purple jacketed pirate, Marco tilted his head to indicate the room next to him as he said, "You can rest here yoi. I'll make sure no one comes by to disturb you three."

Knowing how touchy the trio was over their personal space, Marco nudged Thatch into the room to deposit their burdens on the only bed in it. They exited and waited off to the side for the three to enter and inspect the space. Ace walked in with Luffy and looked around while Sabo stayed near the door. Thatch recognized this as a show of defending the other captain while keeping watch for anything the two commanders might do. Seeing Ace send a nod at Sabo, Marco and Thatch bade them goodbye and turned to leave.

"About your question…" Both commanders look back at the top-hatted blond.

Sabo was shooting uncertain glances at Ace and Luffy and looking at Marco and Thatch as if they were puzzles he was trying to solve. Ace was completely stiff as he glared at the commanders, darting concerned and equally uncertain grey eyes to his two friends.

Marco frowned internally. ' _No, that's not quite right yoi._ ' He looked at the scene again, wanting to make sure he was reading the three's body language right. Looking askance at Thatch, he saw that his brother seemed to catch on as well. The co-captains appeared to be looking for some sort answer from the youngest of the trio.

Ace gave a slight shrug of the shoulder Luffy was using as a headrest. Letting out a small, plaintive whine at the jostling, Strawhat moved his head to swivel tired eyes around the room until they met those of the older teens'. The shrimp stared at the two young captains for a couple seconds before he turned an assessing gaze onto the chef and phoenix.

Having the straw-hat kid's focus directed at them like this was discomforting to Thatch and Marco, an odd heaviness hidden in it. An ethereal weight that wanted to prevent them from hiding while those dark eyes seemed to stare into their souls. A heartbeat later found the weird sensation gone and the kid sending warm looks to Sabo and Ace.

The former pirate eased his muscles to a relaxed state and gave the youngest a fond smile in return. The latter co-captain only relaxed his shoulders, keeping the rest of his body tensed to attack or defend while continuing to glare at the division leaders.

Turning back to the Whitebeard Pirates, Sabo continued, "We're brothers. That's how we are related to each other. Ace is our older brother and Luffy is our 'baby' brother." Luffy pouted hearing himself described as the baby, but didn't refute it. Smiling, likely at the commanders' stunned and shocked faces, the top-hat wearer finished with saying, "Thanks for showing us to the room." He then proceeded to shut the door in their face.

Thatch turned and gave a shaky smile to the First Division leader. "Well…I suppose _that_ answers several questions."

* * *

 **A/N: Well, the Whitebeards finally discover the relationship between the three Spade chaos-creators. Think things will start picking up a bit faster from here. Took forever to write this chapter. I'm not completely happy with it but wanted to get it posted so I called it quits. Might go back later to change things but not completely sure. Long, yes, but at that's just more for you to read and tide you over until the next chapter (which will probably appear around next weekend).**

 **Anyway, no new terms from Luffy this time.**

 **Tell me how this was, would like to know your opinions! Thanks again for reading and for your support. See you next time.**


	6. We Are Keeping ASL!

**A/N: Wow, thanks for all the feedback on the last chapter guys! Didn't really expect everyone to love it** ** _that much_** **, so was an awesome surprise to see the next day.**

 **Yeah, I** ** _did_** **kinda make Pops out to be a bit of a jerk so far in this story. I mean, he just decided to kidnap Ace from his crew. Dude's an Emperor of the Seas and used of making things go his way when he gets an idea into his noggin. Always thought it was a bit presumptuous of him to just take Ace away from everyone in an effort to get the hothead to join them and expect everything to go according to plan. 1) It's Ace. Plans tend to not be his jig. 2) He's a D. 'Nough said. 3) His brothers are with him in this story. Plans explode into tiny, little, pretty colored pieces when Luffy gets involved.**

 **Another update about the story (for those who haven't looked at the same update on my profile and know the whole evil plot against me), I have been coerced into _maybe_ putting Ace/Marco in this story. Won't be major to the plot, more on the side stuff, but I can promise that it will be interesting if it goes through. Will still do some stuff related to that (but  not actually be Ace/Marco, just family screwing around with the two's heads) which will be entertaining, but won't progress beyond Ace&Marco brotherly fluffies. So far the votes for Ace/Marco are: Pro (6) Con (4). Let me know what you think! Decision will finalise in...2 Weeks? Yeah, about that I think.**

 **So lucky you guys, another** ** _long_** **chapter makes an appearance. Yeah, the title sucks but couldn't think of anything else.**

 **Yes! "Bink's Sake" ("Bink's Brew" version in this chapter) makes an appearance…kind of. You'll see what I mean. Tell me what you think of it!**

 **Disclaimer cookies for everyone!** **Already explained the disclaimer and crap before and don't feel like doing it again.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: We Are Keeping ASL! A Night of Planning and Preparing**

* * *

"Okay, they're gone. Ace, put Lu down and take the stuff off the bed then shove it against the door."

Sliding off Ace's back, Luffy barely touched the floor before his shaky legs gave out and his butt met the ground. Uncaring about his new position the smaller raven started to Shift into his pleasant, scaled form. Sabo's immediate cry to stop put an effective halt to the process.

" _Sávbó_ , whyyy? I'm _tiiired_ , let me sleep!" Sabo walked over to the whining teen sitting in the middle of the room.

Looking down at the pouting face in fond exasperation, Sabo told him, "Because you only have the clothes that you're wearing right now. If you Shift while in them they'll be torn to pieces. What would we say to the pirates outside about the disappearance of your clothing?"

Luffy frowned up at his brother, brain trying to trudge through the logic of the statement. Ace shoving the bed against the door caught his eye. With a serious face, Luffy tilted his head up to look Sabo in the eye and deadpanned, " _Atce_ burnt them in his sleep." Complete silence met this answer. For a few seconds.

Sabo choked on a snort before hunching over and grabbing his stomach, laughing so hard it hurt to breathe and his face was red like Luffy's vest. Ace, red-faced for an entirely different reason, stammered and gaped at what his baby brother had said.

Scowling, he crossed his arms before exclaiming, "That only happened once! It's not that funny, jerks!"

"Liar! Ace did it _way_ more than once!"

"Don't point at me! And dammit, Sabo, stop laughing! It wasn't that funny, you ass!"

Sabo tried to get himself under control, gasping and almost choking on the chuckles still coming from his throat. He collapsed next to Luffy face-up and sprawled across the ground with his eyes closed. Lifting his hand, he and Lu tapped knuckles while Sabo tried to even out his breathing. ' _Trust Lu to break up a tense atmosphere without any effort_ ,' he thought. He knew Ace felt the same without even looking at the pouter currently glaring holes in the wall.

"But seriously, Lu. Take the clothes off before Shifting. And stay small." Luffy muttered about the unfairness of clothing but did as Ace asked. Kind of.

Ace turned to gather up the blankets and pillows and move them to the center of the room. Hearing his brother moving about, Sabo sat up to go help Ace move the stuff for the brothers' nest. Opening his eyes, the first thing Sabo saw was a large black-scaled head with honey-colored eyes staring at him from only a few inches away.

"Gaaahhh! Don't do that Luffy!" The dragon let out a low rumbling chuckle at seeing his brother's startled flail.

Ace, carrying a large stack of pillows and blankets, tripped over his brother's tail and crashed into the pile he'd made of their supplies. Looking up at the black nuisance to berate him for not paying attention, Ace stared at the figure looming above him. "I said ' _small_ ' Luffy, like a large dog or something. Not the size of a freakin' _horse_!"

Sabo palmed his face and shook his head. Yeah, technically a horse _was_ small to Luffy when he was full-sized so it was a little on him and Ace for not specifying. But Ace was a little off in describing their little brother's size. The room was smaller than their cabin back on the _Wild Card_ where Lu would have been fine like this. They had purposely chosen that ship with their brother's other form in mind.

Sabo and Ace were almost a head taller than Luffy's shoulder, though the long neck and head added another four or so feet to the dragon's height. Lu stood with his head bowed down so that his horns wouldn't accidentally scrape the ceiling. His wings were folded tight to his sides and his tail curled around and underneath him so Ace wouldn't trip on it again. Even when only about half the size he truly was, Luffy made for an imposing creature.

Luffy carefully stretched his limbs. Ace was right, this room was too small. He couldn't stretch his wings like he wanted, so he had to settle for ruffling the appendages before keeping them tight against his body. For a dragon, Luffy was better described as sleek and lanky versus the typical large and muscled bulk most described dragons possessing. Lu wasn't exactly skinny but he didn't have much girth either. Even so, when he made himself as small as possible without actually manipulating his form, Lu still took up a majority of the space in the room.

Sighing, Sabo reached up and rubbed the ridge of his little brother's muzzle. "It's fine, Lu. We were going to huddle anyway so it doesn't matter." The blond jerked his head towards the blanket/pillow pile Ace had made. "Let's fix our bed and get some rest." The black dragon was too tired to do more than give a bare nod and transmit a small feeling of agreement.

Ace huffed at his brothers before making a warm, closed-lip smile and patting Lu's neck. "C'mon. You look about ready to fall over."

The brothers walked over to their pile of nest supplies and began forming their bed, Luffy being careful not puncture or rip anything with his talons. When finished, the two Human-shaped brothers stepped aside so Luffy could get in without accidentally stepping or pushing one of them. Once settled and curled up, Lu partially raised the wing inside the nest so Ace and Sabo could climb under and rest against his side. Grabbing the two pillows set aside they made themselves comfortable against their dragon-brother's warm side. Luffy waited until they stopped moving before tucking his head up against Sabo's legs (Sabo having claimed the spot by his hind leg where the scales were still very warm but less rigid). Ace was nestled in the crook where the foreleg's bicep butted up against Luffy's side and the dragon's neck curved around. He and Sabo usually tried to scramble for this nap spot, among others, when sleeping together like this. It was warm, the scales weren't too hard, they got to play with their brother's mane (to Lu's occasional annoyance), and…they got to listen to their brother's calming heartbeat.

When everyone finished getting comfortable, Luffy lowered his wing over them like a dark canopy and wrapped his tail around the edge. Having it inside wouldn't be very useful if they were attacked, after all.

Running his hands along the ebony mane Ace muttered quietly, "You're too skinny Lu. Even if you're unhappy you need to eat."

"And whose fault is it that we were upset, hmmm Ace?" Said brother cringed at the glare he heard in the blond's voice.

' _Not like it's_ completely _my fault either though._ ' The fire-user paused as he suddenly remembered something, body heating up to match his growing anger. ' _They were supposed to get away! The hell!? Why am I the only one in trouble here!?'_ Opening his mouth to vent his anger at his younger brothers' actions, he was cut-off by a low, breathy whine from the dragon around them.

"We'll talk about this later after we've all gotten some rest," Sabo said as he gently patted Lu's snout in apology. Their baby brother didn't need him and the stubborn idiot going at it right now.

Even exhausted and begging for sleep, Luffy found it evading him. Here, under his wing, the air was heavy with the comforting and familiar scents of his brothers. He was finally able to feel calm descend on his mind with the return of the one who had been taken from him. Luffy was firmly curled around his Treasure. None of it was missing anymore. So why couldn't he submit to sleep?

Sensing their youngest brother's distress, the older teens rubbed the black neck and nose while emitting feelings of comfort and affection. They felt Luffy relax but still not go to sleep. Sabo briefly wondered if Lu was afraid the nightmares he'd had while Ace was gone would come back. It was plausible, for sure, and it wouldn't be the first time the youngest refused to sleep due to nightmares.

"Ne, Lu, what's wrong?" Luffy let out a soft whine at Ace's quiet question.

The older boys were given a jumbled mess of confusion, fear, desire for rest, and doubt. So Luffy didn't know why he couldn't sleep either. They continued rubbing and petting the younger teen as he gave another soft whine.

Ace slowed his ministrations as he puzzled over the last bit of emotion his baby brother had shared. Broadcasting affection and sincerity through the physical touch of his hand on the black scales and through the brothers' mental bond, Ace promised, "I'll be here when you wake up, Lu. Me and Sabo both. We're your big brothers, no way are we going to leave our 'weak baby brother' all alone. We'll be right here for you always." Sabo smiled at Ace's words.

"Yeah, Lu. We'll never leave you alone in this world. We made a promise after all, didn't we?" Luffy chuffed in agreement and completely relaxed, basking in the comfort of having his _asalkynn_ next to him.

Ace, grinning, gently began humming a familiar tune to the three brothers; one that hadn't failed to ease the youngest's mind yet. They also made a habit of randomly changing some of the verses to include some of Luffy's heritage. The little changes made the young dragon very happy whenever he caught them, and hearing him laugh and sing along (or at least try) always brightened Ace and Sabo moods. After humming a few verses and having thought of some switches, Ace began lightly singing. Sabo hummed along to help Ace keep the right tempo and to help contribute to putting Lu to sleep.

 _"Flying the gold and silver seas,_  
 _A salty wind puts us at ease,_  
 _Day and night,_  
 _To our delight,_  
 _The journey never ends._

 _Gather up the scaly crew,_  
 _It's time to fly out Bink's brew,_  
 _Pirate-dragons we,_  
 _Eternally,_  
 _Challenge the wind and sea."_

Sabo and Ace heard a deep and steady rumble coming from Luffy, causing them to smile as they sang and hummed. It sounded like the dragon was purring but Luffy always denied it by saying that dragons 'thrum', not 'purr'. Even though the vibrating sound was more constant and unchanging than what a cat makes, the co-captains still believed it sounded more like purring. They were also pleased to see that Lu was finally starting to drift off to sleep.

 _"See how far you've come,_  
 _And the day's just begun,_  
 _So spread your wings,_  
 _Fly dawn 'til dusk,_  
 _Over the sea of dreams."_

* * *

"Marco, what's up with Thatch? He's acting like someone stole his hair gel and then shaved his head. Keeps mumbling about what a terrible person he is too. The man actually had the nerve to include the rest of us in his ramblings as well." The First Commander stopped walking to turn and face the Sixteenth Commander.

"On another note, does the idiot know he has a giant hole in the back of his pants? Did he set himself on fire from trying to do a prank or did you do it?" He lips twitched up at the reminder of Ace's stunt and the brothers' comments.

"Do you know where he is right now, yoi?" Izou narrowed his eyes at the dodged questions, irked his brother knew something and was holding out on him. He'd seen the little lip-twitch that meant the stoic blond was amused at something.

"In the kitchen, probably whining, finishing preparing dinner. So about the grumbling and burnt pants?" Marco looked passed the kimono-wearer in the general direction of the kitchen, absently thinking about Izou's questions and what he would share.

Izou, recognizing the silence and Marco's half-lidded, faraway eyes as one of his I'm-thinking-about-something-important-just-wait-yoi looks. Wanting for any information about what had gotten into the Head Chef to make the man so depressed Izou patiently waited for the phoenix to share.

Marco didn't mind the thought of telling the geisha man about Ace burning the hole into Thatch's pants (or the other brothers' comments about the chef). That wasn't what he was taking so long to decide over. No, he was more occupied by whether or not he should tell Izou about the boys' relationship.

He and Thatch had gone to visit Pops and shared what they had learned after leaving the boys in the room (with a guard stationed at each end of the corridor). Thatch had left them after a bit to go start on the crew's dinner. Marco and Whitebeard continued to talk for a long while afterwards, mostly about the plan to adopt all three brothers. Hearing just _how_ the three were related only firmed the Captain's decision to take them all. He'd told Marco to signal the Spade Pirates to sail up and moor alongside the _Moby_ so that they could talk with the crew. Pops had gotten word that Namur and Jiru had met up with the _Blue Moby One_ and that is why the ship was taking so long to meet them. They'd be here later tonight and, if the other Spade Pirates were willing, would take the captain trio's crew onboard. Either way, they needed to get whatever the three brothers owned from their old rooms on their ship and put into their new accommodations on Whitebeard's ship.

While it was true he and Thatch had told Whitebeard about Sabo, Ace, and Luffy being brothers, they had done so because Pops was Captain. ' _With how secretive and guarded those three are they might not welcome many knowing, yoi._ ' Marco trusted his brother and knew the other wouldn't say anything if asked not to. Izou had said that he'd met up with Thatch and the Fourth hadn't said anything about the boys either. ' _Probably for the same reason I feel I shouldn't yoi_.' Seeing how uncomfortable sharing that knowledge with the commanders made the teens feel gave Marco the impression something had happened in the past over it. Something very bad.

So the fact the three _had_ shared this revealing news to Thatch and Marco was a little humbling. It showed that the two commanders managed to garner _some_ amount of trust, however miniscule, from a trio of very distrusting brothers. If the phoenix relayed it to another crewmember there was an extreme likelihood of him losing that shaky trust and possibly not getting it back for a very long time.

Focusing back on Izou, Marco replied to the man's earlier questions. "Thatch's pants were burned by Ace yoi. He got too close so the kid lit them up to make him move." Seeing a desire to know more about the story glowing in the dark eye across from him, Marco added, "I'm sure that if you ask the blond, Sabo, about it nicely he'll tell you." Izou frowned.

"Not the other two?" Marco shrugged a shoulder.

"Ace might, yoi. I think it would honestly depend on his mood when you ask. The little straw-hat kid, Luffy, I don't know. He didn't really speak, yoi, except for maybe once and it was only to whisper to Ace." The black-haired commander folded his arms in his purple kimono.

"I'm guessing he was quiet because of how drained he was, assuming the Spade Pirates told you the truth." Marco nodded. "So what would be wrong with asking after the brat got some rest and food?"

"I think…" Blue eyes narrowed in thought. What should he say?

Marco hardly knew anything about the tiny pirate and the other two never actually revealed anything about him when they had finally started answering Marco and Thatch's questions. All he _did_ know was that Luffy was a tenacious little fighter even half-starved and on the verge of collapse. He also knew the brat did _not_ like his personal space invaded while exhausted and was prone to attack those he felt were too close. If the kid became uncomfortable then the older brothers would come to his defense (like earlier with Ace lighting people on fire or burning Thatch's pants).

"I think," Marco began again, "that it would be wise to be careful doing so. We don't know what the brat's normally like since we've only seen him either pissed or exhausted, yoi. In both cases we've seen he can be aggressive and very touchy about others getting close to him. Brat did a number on Thatch's arm when he pinned the kid. Do you know if a nurse looked at it yoi?"

Izou nodded as he said, "Yeah, he got it bandaged. Needed stitches though."

Relieved, the blond went back to the topic at hand. "Even if we don't know what type of Zoan Devil Fruit he likely has, yoi, I don't think Strawhat will be as bad after resting and eating. Like you think. The problem would be, I believe, getting either him or the other two to let you get close. Ace and Sabo are protective of him and have no issue attacking anyone who upsets him yoi."

"They tell you that?" The phoenix shook his head.

"No, yoi. But anytime Thatch, even accidentally, got too close Ace would singe him. He's lucky he only has a hole in his pants for the number of times he _purposely_ pushed at them yoi." Izou scoffed at hearing this.

"Of course the oaf would antagonize a pissed fire-user. Why wouldn't he?" A small smile grew on Marco's face hearing his brother's grumble.

"If you want, Izou, you can join me and Vista in getting the brats' things off their ship and set up in the new rooms they'll be staying in, yoi." The Sixteenth Commander pursed his lips in thought.

' _I may be able to learn more about the brats should I decide to go… If not from the crew then at least from the stuff we'll have to pack away in their rooms._ ' Giving a decisive nod at this train of thought, Izou agreed to his brother's proposal.

Marco went to go meet up with Thatch in the kitchen when the Sixteenth Commander stopped him again.

"Oh, by the way Marco, have you learned anything else from those brats? And what about what you were whispering to Thatch before going to take them to the guest room?"

"After we get the stuff off their ship and we get back our last two commanders from _Moby One_ Pops is going to hold a meeting, yoi," the phoenix called over his shoulder.

* * *

A loud groan succeeded by a solid thud sounded through the relatively quiet kitchen. Other members of the Fourth Division were going about preparing to serve the dinner they'd spent the last couple hours cooking up. Although normally the large kitchen would be bustling with almost frenzied activity with shouts wringing out between the numerous cooks on duty that night, they kept the noise to a buzzing din out of respect to the Head Chef's depressed state. The sound of the thud had the chefs shooting concerned looks at the corner where Thatch sat, body slumped over in a wooden chair with his head planted on the old table face-down.

They'd seen him arrive during the preparations for dinner looking very dejected and distracted. The cooks had caught a glimpse of the burn-hole in the commander's pants—also getting a good look at the blue and white striped boxers underneath—but held back from asking about what he'd done to Marco _this_ time when faced with the aura surrounding him. One could practically see the little raincloud hovering over Thatch. Because of his distracted state, once dinner was finished cooking they had placed him at the table; it was too likely he would accidentally trip or drop any platters being carried out to the mess hall in his state.

When Marco appeared in the doorway the kitchen staff immediately hustled him over to the sulking chef with demands of making the man feel better. Seeing Marco's grim face when the blond saw Thatch in the corner, the other cooks finished grabbing what was needed for serving dinner and left the two alone in the kitchen. Even though everyone on Whitebeard's ship considered each other family, brothers and sisters and siblings, the cooks knew a private talk when they saw one.

"Thatch yoi," Marco began as he crossed his arms and sat down across from the brunet, "Haruta is right, you didn't know."

"Suf'fd bd mmn er suf'd erring…" The phoenix shot an unimpressed look at the cook.

"What?" Thatch rolled his head to the side and looked up at his brother.

"I _said_ 'Stupid bird and your stupid hearing'."

"He's still right, yoi."

"They said 'no' to food. They won't let me feed them; the smallest looks to be _starving_ and they won't accept food," Thatch mumbled as he turned his eyes from Marco to the table's edge by his shoulder.

Marco gave an assessing look at the miserable chef. He knew the issue about being able, or allowed, to feed the three brats wasn't what was making the man so upset. It was part of the problem, but not the crux of it. ' _If he wants to start with this then fine, yoi._ '

"They didn't refuse only you. Jozu had to fight Tophat and Strawhat just to get them to accept some water yoi." Hazel eyes settled back on the blond's face. "Took quite a while to get them to give in according to him. Both brats kept throwing out 'crazy, nonsense ideas' of how he could have tampered with the water, yoi." Thatch's eyes widened as he heard this.

Sitting up and slapping his hands on the table, the Fourth Commander exclaimed, "Jozu would never do something like that! _None_ of us would do something like that!"

"That wasn't all of it. While the little brat, Luffy, came up with stupid ideas, yoi, he was more worried about what the older one, Sabo, was saying. Apparently, all the methods Sabo described were extremely plausible yoi." Thatch gaped at his brother.

"Wh-what?" Marco focused his eyes on the table between them.

"Jozu described some of the methods he was told yoi. Some are a little more ridiculous than others, those were probably based on some of Strawhat's ideas. The rest yoi…some simple, some not, but all were completely doable and very well-planned." Blue met shocked and disbelieving hazel.

Thatch stared at the troubled expression on the phoenix's face. "But-but it's just _water_. And they were obviously thirsty if _Jozu_ was pressing them about it. Why wouldn't they take any?" ' _Yeah, I know they are defensive of the little one_ now _, but…_ ' Continuing his line of thought aloud, he added, "Why would Sabo refuse him and his little—friend—water if Luffy was really thirsty? Wouldn't that go against what they showed us earlier?" Marco caught Thatch's word change.

' _So he_ is _being careful about letting that part out, yoi._ ' "Thatch, it's because of what we saw earlier that it makes sense yoi. I think it's also part of why they refused the offer of food." The chef folded his arms on the table and gave the other commander his full attention. "They are obviously protective of the runt, yoi, but all of them are distrusting of others. Ace doesn't look to be more than 20, same with Sabo, and the shrimp barely looks 12. I don't like to think of what might have caused them to not trust others to where they would refuse water or food when they need it, yoi."

"I suppose that _does_ sorta fit with what we've seen." Thatch nodded in agreement. He stared back at Marco as he asked, "You said that there was another likely reason for not wanting food?"

"I promise, this one is a bit more normal yoi." Thatch arched an eyebrow in question. "I don't think any of the three brats welcomed the idea of eating at the time. They were under a lot of stress, Luffy and Sabo especially, and resting sounded more appealing than food, yoi." The chef frowned but conceded the point.

Eating probably would have made the little one sick with how tense and strained he had seemed. Even if the boy's body needed nourishment badly, forcing the brothers to eat in their earlier state would have made everything worse. ' _And put us on their Shit List, possibly permanently._ ' After calming down and getting some sleep they should be fine to eat. ' _If I manage to convince them, that is…_ '

"What else yoi?"

Thatch shot his brother a confused look. "Huh?"

With a patient look, Marco elaborated, "What else is troubling you? It's not just the troublemaking trio's refusal of your cooking, yoi."

The Fourth Commander slumped back into his chair, crossed his arms, and moped. He mumbled something but even with his excellent hearing Marco didn't catch it.

"Thatch yoi."

"We should have known." Peaking up at the phoenix, he saw a glimmer of understanding in the other's bright eyes. Looking back at his arms folded across his chest, Thatch continued in an equally low tone. He didn't want others to overhear this. "We should have known something was up with them. I heard Ace mumble things in his sleep; couldn't make out what was said, but some of them could have been the names of the other two. Then when I came after him, when he busted out of the infirmary the first time, how the other two tried to protect him… How Luffy and Sabo tried to keep us away from him… Hell! How the tiny, malnourished, exhausted, little runt _stood up to Pops_!"

Marco grimaced at that memory. He hadn't made a very good impression on the brothers with his actions. It was a wonder the youngest even spoke to him or allowed him near the others after his roles in both escape/rescue attempts.

"And Pops had blast the little kid _twice_ with his haki! Twice, Marco! He was so desperate to get to the other two that Pops' first wave of Conqueror's Haki only stunned him. Pops had to use another on Luffy to actually knock him out." Thatch raised his head and stared dejectedly at his brother while saying, "And the last thing that Luffy probably saw was his brothers being taken by 'enemy pirates'. It's no wonder he _bit me_ the next time he saw a close repeat of the event." Wincing at the abject misery in his brother's tone, Marco glanced down at Thatch's wounded arm.

"What did Bay say about the bite yoi?" Thatch barely flicked his eyes at the bandaged wound.

Shrugging his shoulders, the chef answered quietly, "Is fine. Twinges a bit when I move it too much. Needed some stitches. Bay thought it looked more like some wild animal bit me than a frantic kid."

Marco furrowed his brows and stared at the bite. "She find anything odd about it yoi?"

Glancing up, Thatch took in the expression of concern Marco was directing at him. There was something else laced into the other's look but he couldn't identify it. "No…Just that the kid had some strong jaws and rather sharp teeth to do the damage he did. Why?"

"We believe he is a Zoan Fruit-user, remember yoi? We don't know anything about his animal base except that it has claws and makes the little brat aggressive when upset. His bite might have been poisonous, yoi, that's why I asked."

The Fourth nodded slowly in shock as he mumbled, "Right. Forgot about that."

Raising his bitten arm to examine it more closely, Thatch thought over Luffy's behavior since the kid had come aboard the ship. Sighing and lowering the injured limb back against his chest, the commander shot another forlorn look at the blond across from him. "We should have realized how close those three were. That they were _brothers_." Blue eyes softened in sympathy and understanding.

"Pops isn't infallible, Thatch-yoi, he _can_ make mistakes on occasion. None of the information we gathered on Ace mentioned he had two brothers on his ship. Only that his crew was very loyal to him and that he was distanced from them. All three brothers are, yoi."

The two commanders sat in silence for a few minutes. Both were morose over the damage caused by their family's actions, hoping there was a chance of rectifying it. They knew Whitebeard no longer intended to go along with his original plan and had decided to adopt all three brothers. He'd already tasked Marco with finding a set of rooms next to each other for the three to use, finding it unlikely they would accept being placed in close-quarters with anyone on the crew. Thatch had been ordered to start preparing something for the boys to eat once they woke up. The Captain then told them that he would be holding a meeting between the commanders to discuss their new 'brothers' once the _Blue Moby One_ reached them.

Hearing their family out in the galley having dinner, Thatch looked up at his blond brother and asked, "You think they're up yet? It's been a couple hours since we left them." Marco shook his head lightly.

"No, yoi. I left a couple of my division to keep watch. If the brothers wake up then they are to inform me and you about it immediately. Luffy looked tired enough to be down for the rest of the night, yoi. I doubt the other two would allow anyone to get near during that time." He looked up at the pompadoured brunet, "Yes, Thatch. Even if Ace and Sabo are hungry, yoi." Thatch let his protest die in an exhaled breath of air.

"Fine. I'll just get back to cooking something up that's easy on the stomach for those three."

"Wait, yoi." Thatch paused in getting up from his seat, sending a curious look at the phoenix. Marco lifted his eyes to meet with the chef's. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"

Raising an eyebrow in confusion at the question, the Fourth just stared at his brother before going, "What didn't I 'tell'?"

"How come you haven't told anyone about those three being brothers, yoi." Thatch frowned as Marco continued, "Izou came to pester you for new information on our 'new additions to the family'. He would have said something if you mentioned it."

Thatch's frown slowly disappeared. He thought over just why he hadn't gone and told his gossip-loving brother. The man was almost as bad Haruta sometimes when on the hunt for information. ' _Why_ didn't _I tell him? It's important and relevant information after all…_ ' The memory of how the three young pirates looked at Marco and him when Sabo delivered that news came forward. How guarded all three teens— _boys_ —were when they declared their relationship; the distrust they exuded while relaying the statement.

"I guess…for the same reason I suppose _you_ didn't either." The chef gave a decisive nod to himself. "Yeah, I didn't because if they had wanted to let everyone know then they would have made it clear much earlier. Instead they kept it hidden." He shrugged his shoulders and got up from the table. "I figure they have a reason for that and will respect their choice." Marco smirked up at his brother.

"Wow, Thatch-yoi, you sounded almost mature there." The blond got up and left the gaping cook before he could respond.

Walking out the kitchen door he heard Thatch call out behind him, "We are having chicken and fruit for breakfast! _Blue flame-broiled chicken!_ "

* * *

"So? You called us over. What's the Captain say about the deal we gave him?"

Glancing around, Izou and Vista noticed a suspicious lack of crewmembers while Marco was talking to the Spade Pirates' first mate, Zack. All three commanders could still sense their presences onboard and all together. It made the Sixteenth and Fifth Division leaders uneasy but Marco suspected he knew what had happened.

The lazy-faced blond turned back to the Spade pirate and replied, "Whitebeard agreed, he'll take you all in. Your two captains and Luffy will remain on the _Moby Dick_ and we have another of our fleet meeting us later tonight. You and your crewmates are to go join them as they are understaffed at the moment."

Zack stared at the commander, briefly looking at the other two the man had brought over with him. The one he had at first thought to be female, was a gun-toting cross-dresser in a purple and pink kimono with make-up and hair styled like a fancy lady. The other was tall dual-swordsman with a large, styled mustache and dressed in a low V-necked black shirt with white accents and collar, white gloves, light blue pants, with calf-high black boots. A black top-hat reminding him of Captain Sabo's completed the look. Both commanders had black hair and gave off a feeling of suppressed strength.

Giving one last glance at the assembled Whitebeard Pirates, Zack spun about and started for the door leading below while shouting out, "About damn time! I got most of the three's stuff packed up and ready for you to take. Just have some of the stuff in the Captains' cabin."

"Wait!" The cowboy hat wearer sighed but stopped and looked over his shoulder at the cross-dresser.

"Yeah? What is it?" A dark look came into his gaze before asking in a harsh voice, "You guys _are_ here to collect the Monster Trio's things right?"

"Yes, of course we are." Zack glared at the tall swordsman. "I just believe that my brother, Izou, was curious about something." Marco just stayed back to watch how the Spade and his brothers interacted.

Zack, crossing his arms, turned back around to face the three rival pirates. "And what does your crewmate wish to ask?"

A large thud resounded through the ship and caused the four pirates to stare at the deck beneath their feet. Zack scowled, lifting a leg and stomping down heavily on the wood planks a few times. Vista and Izou exchanged puzzled looks at the man's actions. The phoenix just smirked. Zack glanced back up at the visiting pirates, raising an eyebrow to indicate he was waiting for their answer.

"Where…" Izou shot a look at his feet then around the empty deck, "is the rest of your crew?"

The Whitebeard Commanders watched the man unfold his right hand to point down before resting the limb back in its previous position. "That all?"

"Why are they not up here?" Zack looked up at Vista before sliding his eyes over to Marco.

Jerking his head in the First Commander's direction, he said, "The idiots were planning ways to storm your ship until I caught them and beat some sense into them. When they heard you and some others were going to come over and talk again, they got a little…excited."

"Excited…How?" Vista was a little concerned seeing the mischievous grin forming on the pirate's lips.

Turning to the blond Whitebeard Pirate Zack gleefully stated, "Mr. Phoenix, I have some new recipes I believe your cooks and crew would enjoy sampling. Most of them are poultry-based but there are a few fruit dishes as well." Shocked silence greeted the grinning Spade Pirate.

It was broken by Izou laughing so hard he had to hang off Marco's shoulder. Vista chuckled as he looked down at the bird-zoan, noting the irritated twitching of the man's eye. Marco glared at the extremely amused, and somewhat proud, first mate standing opposite them.

"Oh gods," Izou tried to reign in his amusement and hold down the chuckles escaping him, "Thatch needs to hear this—hahaha!"

"He does like collecting new recipes," Vista added, trying to hide a smile while fingering his mustache in thought.

"No he doesn't, yoi," Marco growled out, glaring at his amused brothers. "Weren't you about to lead us somewhere, Zack?"

Shrugging, and not losing the grin, Zack replied as he complied with Marco's request, "At least they're not chasing you around the ship to catch and cook you this time." A vein throbbed on the blond's temple as he heard Vista jump to catch Izou and prevent the geisha from collapsing due to another fit of boisterous laughter.

* * *

"So—hf!—I've been meaning to ask," Zack glanced over at Vista while setting his own load down, "why did you already have your captains' things packed up?"

"I didn't have time before you three showed up to finish everything, still have the stuff in their room left to get. Had to waste time chasing down the damn idiots and tossing their stupid asses in the galley."

"That doesn't really answer his question, Mr. Cowboy," Izou chimed in, carrying a small chest over to the pile of items to be taken back to the _Moby_.

Zack took stock of the few items they'd brought out to have Marco ferry up to the deck of Whitebeard's flagship. He'd already packed away his three captains' more personal belongings that had been hanging out loose around the ship. Most of said personal items had been in their cabin and those were safely hidden away in the first couple of chests to be taken. The Monster Trio liked their privacy and Zack wanted to make sure that the kidnapping idiot Whitebeards didn't learn more than what those three brothers were willing to share. The Spade Pirates didn't know why their three leaders were so damn touchy about their pasts, but they owed those three a great deal for all they've done. In respect for that, the Spades never pushed the topic and let the brothers tell them whatever they wished to share in their own time. Knowing what great kids they were made him want to hurt whoever had caused this secretiveness in the brothers.

The Spade first mate waited for the Whitebeard's flaming chicken to come back from taking up the last load before he answered the cross-dresser and fancy-dressed swordsman. He didn't want to explain more than necessary to this bunch of idiots. Plus, that fruity chicken-guy had been giving him odd looks for the past hour while the other two tried questioning him about the Monster Trio. In the meantime, he'd think of what he could say that didn't really tell these three kidnappers anything.

Vista saw how the smaller beige-hatted man was looking up at Marco's returning figure and put a hand Izou's shoulder to quiet his impatient brother. The man looked to be ready to answer their questions but seemed to want all present before doing so. When he felt Izou tapping a wooden sandal beneath the man's purple and pink kimono he barely squeezed the thinner shoulder. Izou was unusually patient today but he couldn't really blame the man, none of the crew had had a very pleasant morning (or rest of the day) thanks to the trio onboard their ship. The Spade's speech wasn't helping matters either. While the man was being polite in addressing them, there was an unmistakable tinge of mockery to it when he addressed them; whenever he talked about his three leaders in the style of speech, that mockery was replaced with hints of admiration and trust.

Marco transformed and dropped the last few feet to the deck. Bored look never leaving his face, the First Commander looked between his brothers and Zack. Seeing that Vista was holding back a grumpy Izou, he turned to the first mate of the Spade Pirates to see the man analyzing them. After a couple minutes of the shorter pirate glancing between the commanders and the giant ship beside the _Wild Card_ the cowboy pirate started to speak.

"From what I've heard," he said while staring up at the _Moby Dick_ , "Mr. Emperor Whitebeard likes taking in people of all walks of life. Man, while firm and one to be feared, has a big heart and respects loyalty. He has a large fleet at his command and a large territory with many islands flying his flag." Zack paused for a second before continuing in a more questionable tone, "Also hear that despite the size of Mr. Whitebeard's fleet and territory, he calls those under his protection friends and those on his ships family. Rumors say Mr. Strongest in the World is also very protective of said family." The cowboy Spade Pirate looked askance at the Whitebeard Commanders.

"Yes, Mr. Zack. Pops is indeed very protective of his sons and daughters. Anyone he takes onto his ship is either considered family, his children, or close friend of the family. We have people allied with us that don't sail with us but are still considered part of our family all the same," Vista confirmed.

Izou watched as Zack stared back up at the ship dwarfing the _Wild Card_. The man shook his head and glanced down at the deck. Zack rubbed his brow with a few fingers before hooking his thumbs in his belt loops and turning to face Izou and his brothers with a critical eye.

"So? Are you going to tell us why you and the rest of your 'loyal to the bone' crew are so willing to dump off your 'Monster Trio'?" Zack glowered at the geisha's tone and words.

"First things first, Mr. Miss. We," Zack growled, pointing at himself and then gesturing below, "are _very_ loyal to our Captains Sabo and Ace and Mr. Luffy. Those three may be crazy-ass monsters of people, but they have done a lot for us idiots without asking for much of anything in return. Our job was to man the ship and they would deal with everything else." He glared at the three commanders, sparing a few seconds to direct at the giant ship next to them, before looking about the _Wild Card_ as he continued in a softer tone, "Those three may be young, crazy, seemingly inhuman at times… _aaand_ idiots at others…" He glared at Izou, "But never once have they backed down from their promise. Even when it may have been smarter to do so because one of us idiot crewmen landed our stupid ass in hot water. Whether because we distrusted and doubted them for a second, didn't follow an order to the letter, feared them, or were too stubborn to listen. Didn't matter one bit. We may have gotten our idiot assess chewed out later for whatever happened, but they still protected and supported us and kept their promise without any hesitation."

"Our reports on your crew said that you weren't very close to your…," Vista tried to think of the appropriate word, " _leaders_ , yet you seem to indicate otherwise from your story."

"Yeah, and what's with the whole 'Captains Ace and Sabo' and then 'Mr. Luffy'? You keep referring to them as your captains and leaders but keep the youngest separate of the captains." Marco flicked his lazy blue eyes over to Izou then settled them back on Zack, curious as to this answer too.

Zack shrugged before answering, "You're intel's right. None of us are particularly close to the three, Mr. Two-Swords. But who wouldn't be loyal to those who give their all to uphold a promise made to a bunch of nobodies? None of us had any intention to fight the hazards of this world, we just wanted away from our old lives and those three crazies gave us that opportunity. Seeing what they would do for us made us idiots want to support them with our very best in return."

"You told me those three were your captains, but you only call the older two by that title. Why yoi?"

Zack glanced around the ship again before replying, "I'm getting there Mr. Phoenix and Mr. Miss." Izou shut his mouth, annoyed at the damn nickname the man refused to drop.

The Spade looked around a bit more in thought, trying to piece together what he wished to say. He didn't wat to tread on any of the Monsters' toes. Captain Sabo and Captain Ace always tried redirecting the topic whenever it came to their younger brother. It made him curious as to what secret the three were trying to hide but he respected them too much to try and pry the information out of them. Plus, he didn't want a beat-down from any of the Monster Trio; Zack might be left alive, but he'd be wither in the infirmary for a few weeks or wishing he were dead.

"I guess…It's because of how our captains treat Mr. Luffy," Zack stated. Izou perked up.

' _Finally! Now maybe we can find out how they are related to each other!'_ The Geisha hid his excitement and asked, "How do they treat him and why is it so different from you?"

Marco was interested in what the first mate would say to this. He and Thatch already knew about the three brats being brothers but had decided against letting that information out in the open.

Vista examined his brothers out of the corner of his eye. Izou was hiding it but the man loved gossip and finding things out about others. The three boys back onboard were annoying him to no end because nobody could figure out their relationship due to lack of information on them. How they had missed something so big was unknown to him; Whitebeard had connections everywhere and their intelligence gathering center was nothing to sneeze at. So the fact they missed something so crucial about one they were planning to recruit was a shocker and small blow to their pride.

"We see Mr. Luffy as an unofficial captain because Captains Ace and Sabo generally consult with him over things like where to go, what to do, and who can join the crew. The reason they gave us for doing was because, according to them, Mr. Luffy 'had good instincts'." The three commanders just stared at the cowboy pirate.

"That's it? That's why you guys respect the little straw-hat shrimp?" Zack glared Izou.

"No, Mr. Skirts. That is not the only reason why we respect Mr. Luffy," the Spade first mate ground out while directing a venomous glare at the Sixteenth Division Commander. "We were closer to him than our actual captains, though Mr. Luffy still kept his distance from us like the older two. He would sit and hang out with whoever was on watch some nights or told funny random stories to us whenever he felt one of us idiots weren't feeling good. Kid was like a little bouncing ray of sunshine, he made everyone feel better." The glower softened and he directed the next bit to all three commanders.

Zack continued in a politer tone, "As for what I said earlier… We doubted his so-called 'good instincts' at first, naturally. Yes, the kid was right a grand majority of the time but we chalked that up to dumb luck or the captains just humoring him after already making a decision because they had known each other for so long." The man looked up at the darkening sky as he said, "One incident finally convinced us that Captains Sabo and Ace weren't duping our idiot asses. It was right before we left for Saboady, one of the idiots introduced someone who wanted onto the crew. Big buff dude bit larger than you, Mr. Two-Swords, now that I think about it… Anyway, this guy seemed to radiate strength as he talked to the captains. Didn't like how he talked, rubbed some of us the wrong way with how blunt and direct he was, but the captains were considering him to join our crew. We weren't disagreeing because we heard how nasty the New World could be so his strength would have been welcomed."

"I take it that he didn't join though," Vista inquired. Zack smirked and shook his head.

"Nah, not at all. You see, while Captains Sabo and Ace were talking to the man Mr. Luffy came out of their room after one of his naps and joined us outside. Mr. Luffy stared at the guy kinda funny for a few seconds before walking over to the three. I shit you not, he grabbed the man and just chucked him off the ship and back onto the docks. Still laugh about it whenever I remember the look on the idiot's face."

"What did your captains do yoi?"

Zack smiled while saying, "Absolutely. Nothing. Just looked at Mr. Luffy and the man a few times before nodding and telling us to cast off."

"Did you ask the shrimp _why_ he did it?" Izou didn't understand how a whole crew could just accept a decision made on the spot like that based on one little brat's actions.

"Sure. Mr. Luffy just looked at us and said that he 'didn't like trash near his treasure' before running up to sit on the ship's bow. Found out later that strong dude was actually some bounty hunter who was famous for infiltrating crews and then turning them over to the Marines to cash in on multiple bounties at once." Vista eyed the man, seeming to recall hearing something about a bounty hunter like that.

"And he didn't know any of this before making that decision?" Zack shook his head.

"Nah, not even Captain Sabo. He was the one to usually gain that sort of information and not even he knew what they guy looked like or what the man's name was. Since then, none of us bothered questioning Mr. Luffy or his 'instincts'."

The three Whitebeards were a little surprised over this news. Still, it confirmed Marco's thoughts over how much the two older brothers seemed to rely on the youngest. ' _They_ were _taking cues from him, yoi; not just trying to keep him comfortable and from getting upset.'_ But the kid's comment about 'trash' and 'treasure' had Marco stumped. He couldn't really think of any animals that were possessive over treasure. Perhaps that was just part of the shrimp's natural personality and not his animal-base's?

"Anyway, if Misters Phoenix, Miss, and Two-Swords would follow me? It's getting late and we still have to get some stuff out of the Trio's room. You need to be off the ship before I let the dumbasses out of the galley, preferably before they somehow manage to bust out." With that, Zack turned and started for the interior of the ship where the Captain's Cabin lay towards the stern.

Stewing over being called 'Mr. Miss' in that damn tone again, it took Izou a moment to catch on to what the Spade had said.

"Wait! What? You mean 'rooms' not 'room' don't you?" Zack glanced over his shoulder at the kimono-wearer, forehead creased in confusion.

"Umm, no. I mean room, as in _their room_. Why would I mean something I never said?"

Vista frowned hearing this, asking, "They sleep together?"

Turning around to face down the hall, Zack nodded as he stated lightly, "Pretty often from what I can tell. I'm usually the only one brave enough to wake the three crazies in the morning but some of the others have too. Shocked us the first couple of times but we're used of it now."

Zack took a peek behind him, enjoying the startled expressions gracing the darker haired commanders. He frowned at the chicken-man. Sure, his face rarely changed much any of the times Zack talked with the guy, but he didn't look nearly as shocked as the other two. Instead, he had a more considering glint in his blue eyes. Zack's own narrowed in suspicion before turning back ahead of him.

When they reached the room Zack pulled out his key to the old lock and started trying to work the old thing open. He paused after catching on that the three Whitebeard Pirates had suddenly gone silent. Looking over at them, he was at first confused by their odd stares.

"What?"

"Why are you unlocking the door, yoi?"

Zack raised an eyebrow as he replied matter-of-factly, "Because we need to get into the room. Why else?"

"But why is the door, I'm assuming to the three's room, even locked?" Izou asked as he stared in complete confusion at the man.

"Always been that way. There's two locks: one inside and the one on the knob. I have a key to the knob but only someone who's inside can lock or unlock the other," he replied, going back to fiddling worn key and lock.

As soon as Zack managed to unlock the old door, Vista asked, "Why do they lock their door so securely?"

"Dunno. Don't ask. The Monster Trio like their privacy and we idiot followers of theirs are willing to give it to them. One of the few rules on this ship: no one's allowed inside without permission or if the inner-lock is engaged. If we have permission but the inside is locked, then we either knock or wait outside the door." Zack smiled as he said, "Used to tease the Monsters about it but we got tired of dragging our dumb asses out of the ocean while Mr. Luffy laughed at us and called us 'idiots'. There's only so many times you can take that…" Wiping the frown off his face from the last statement, the cowboy pirate opened the door and entered the room.

Walking in, the three commanders were a little surprised at the size of it. While Pops' room was understandably big even for a captain, this room was smaller than any of the commanders' rooms. It was dominated on one side by a bookshelf and desk with some chests stacked opposite, and three hammocks hanging near a giant pile of blankets and pillows on the other.

Izou frowned, a little disappointed that any personal items were nowhere to be seen. The desk and bookshelf were empty, save for a sheet of paper on the former. There were locks on the three chests so he couldn't go peeking through those later without somehow unlocking them. Nothing interesting met his eyes when looking at the hammocks, they appeared worn and used with no significant tells about whose was which. The only interesting things were the lighting and the giant pile of bedding.

Vista found the one source of light a little odd as well. Normally, their rooms had a central light with a desk lamp or two in them. One lamp for the table, one for the nightstand. The only source of light in this room was the small window above the desk and the little lamp sitting on the desk itself. Judging by the tiny patching of wood in the center of the ceiling this room used to have a central light but it was removed at some point.

Marco was taking more interest in the blanket and pillow pile in the corner of the room. To him, the thing looked more like a nest and seemed to be the source of the odd scent permeating the room. It matched the one he'd noticed covering the brothers, though Luffy seemed to be the source of it.

Zack walked over to the blanket pile, tossing in the outlying pillows and folding it all up into one giant bundle. Half-dragging, half-carrying it over to the three Whitebeard Pirates he said, "Mr. Two-Swords, if you would be so kind as to grab this while Mr. Skirts grabs one of those chests?"

"Are we seriously bringing all that with us? Can't we get new blankets or something? Perhaps even a proper set of set of beds for the three?" Zack glared at Izou.

"Excuse me, Mr. I-Like-Dresses, but may I remind you three that it is _your_ damn captain who is stealing _our_ three leaders. This is what Mr. Luffy and Captains Sabo and Ace usually sleep in. The hammocks are more for when we are experiencing rough weather or they want to nap up high and can't do it outside for some reason. Seeing as you caused a massive incident between them and your crew, I would suggest trying to appeal to them through making them comfortable if you truly wish for those three to give you a chance. I wouldn't doubt their ability to simply vanish off your ship if they really felt the need to. They're crazy kids capable of pulling off crazy shit."

Nodding at the man's rant, acknowledging the truth behind his words, Izou and Vista complied with Zack's requests. When he was about to walk out the door with a chest, which had a unique design carved into its surface upon closer examination, Izou noticed that only Vista and he were about to leave.

"What about you two?"

Gesturing at Marco, Zack replied, "I wish to talk privately with Mr. Phoenix here before you three leave."

"Why only him and not one of us, if I may ask?" Vista asked politely, forestalling the geisha commander's budding annoyance.

"Simple, Mr. Two-Sword." Folding his arms, Zack nodded at Marco as he answered, "Mr. Luffy 'okayed' him, so I only feel comfortable talking to Mr. Phoenix about some things versus anyone else from your ship. That includes Mr. Whitebeard. Regardless of his intentions or anything else, Mr. Luffy hasn't approved him so I won't discuss private matters with the man. 'Sides, to us Spade Pirates he's still the bastard stealing away our Trio."

Marco gave a bare tilt of his head towards his brothers, telling them it was fine and they could go. Thanking the Spade for his honest answer, and sending looks of their own at the firebird, Vista prodded an unhappy Izou to exit the room.

Zack walked over to check and make sure they were really leaving before shutting and locking the door. Facing the phoenix commander he studied the man in silence with his thumbs hooked into his belt loops once again. Just as Marco was about to open his mouth and speak, the cowboy leaned against the door and folded his arms.

"What's on your mind, Mr. Fire-Chicken? You've been giving me odd looks since you came aboard."

"I was wondering at your odd speech, yoi. It was much different than when I first spoke with you. Was it all an act for them," Marco indicated his departed brothers," or something else?"

"Nah," Zack smirked, "you caught me at a bad time before. I normally speak like that. Is fun to talk in such a way that sounds so polite and yet mocking at the same time. Makes others act like idiots when they hear because they can't decide if I am insulting them or not. Bit of a bad habit but not one I am inclined to drop."

"And your captains are fine with this? I don't think they would take too well to being insulted all the time yoi."

The Spade shrugged, nonchalantly saying, "Little Luffy thinks it's funny and said he wouldn't toss my ass so long as I respect the two captains."

"Who happen to be his older brothers, yoi." Zack stiffened and jerked his eyes up to stare at the lazy ones of the blond commander, scrutinizing the man across from him.

"Hmph. So they told you." He settled back against the door again with a concerned look crossing his face. "Tell me, what happened? How are they? We saw Ace's flames earlier but he doesn't usually bring out the big fireworks like that unless he is pissed."

"They are resting right now in one of the _Moby_ 's guest rooms. Together yoi. Refused to be put in separate rooms, which I thought was understandable at the time."

"But not anymore, right?" Marco confirmed the other's guess with a small nod. "Right. Well, those three are rarely away from one another. If they are then one of them is always with the youngest, Luffy; either Ace or Sabo have an eye on him, while Little Luffy refuses to be away from either for long stretches of time." A slight frown touched the corners of the blond commander's lips.

"Would you be willing to tell me what may have caused this yoi?" Zack let out huff and shook his head.

"I might if I knew, myself. Those three are very tight-lipped about their past, not letting out more than vague details you can't even draw a fuzzy picture from. They are very good at hiding what they don't want others to know, I assume they've had practice at it."

"What else could you tell me yoi?"

"Oh no," Zack said, waggling and then pointing a finger at Marco, "before I consider doing that, _you_ , Mr. Blue Chicken, are to tell me what the hell happened with my leaders on your damned ship."

"They escaped while I was talking to you and ran amok again. We caught them after managing to surround them and prevent another escape attempt. Commanders Izou and Vista out there caught and restrained Sabo while another commander, Thatch, pinned Luffy to the deck in a submission hold. The straw-hat brat saw Sabo and freaked, snarling and giving a nasty bite and kick to Thatch before trying to attack the two holding Sabo. I stopped him until Ace showed up and tried to drown the deck in his flames." Zack's eyes were turning darker and darker hearing this.

Trembling, white-fists clenched at his sides, he ranted and raved at the Whitebeard Pirates stupidity at the treatment of their captains while pacing the room. Seriously, he told the stupid bird-man that his crew _weren't_ to try and cage or box in the brothers. That there was _no way_ they would react to that with anything less than violence, especially if it looked like one of them was being _threatened_! Which it sounds like what happened almost exactly! Gods these pirates were arrogant _morons_ to completely throw out another's advice like this. And they were supposedly going to try and _recruit_ the three after _that_!?

Marco waited for the furious pirate to calm down. He could understand the curses and threats being uttered by the man; it was completely within his right to be upset. The Spade had done his duty as First Mate to help the ones he followed but Marco's family had gone against his advice almost immediately. They hadn't quite meant to at the time, being more concerned about letting the two injure themselves in their weakened states, but that was the end result.

Glancing over at where the nest had been, monitoring the cowboy's rants for signs of stopping, the First Division Commander noticed some odd indents and scuffs along the floor boards. Flicking his gaze over at the cursing pirate and seeing him still fully ensconced in his mental tirade, Marco eyed the grooves and miscellaneous marks. Some looked to be scuffs made by boots or dragged objects, others dents made by something sharp or heavy dropping. What really drew his attention were the ones that looked to have been by claws or something sharp being dragged against the ground. The scrapes and supposed claw-marks extended from their concentration around the nest to a light random scatter about the rest of the floor. A check above the nest for a couple feet up the wall showed scrapes that someone had tried to paint or stain over. No claw-marks though.

Hearing Zack's ranting slowing, he turned his focus back onto the displeased pirate. Zack took a deep breath in before blowing it out. He walked over to the desk, pulled out the basic wooden chair, and sat in it backwards with his arms folded across the top.

Glaring up at the blond man, he gritted out, "Anything else I should know? How did Ace's flames stop? You guys silence him or did collapse from exhaustion?"

"No, yoi. I convinced them to let me through his fire-barrier so that I could talk with them. They didn't let me close at first but I was eventually able to speak with them. Got them to let down the barrier and in exchange I would take them to a room they could use to rest, yoi."

"What you mean to say, is that Little Luffy _let_ you get close enough and the other two agreed because Little Luffy was either convinced or too tired to fight against the suggestion," the Spade told the commander.

Muttering under his breath about idiot pirates while taking off his hat to muss his hair, Zack looked up at the blond. Holding his head in his hand he asked Marco, "So, Mr. Fire-Chicken, how _did_ you convince an unhappy set of brothers to let your blue-feathered ass near them after the shit your crew pulled? Especially after you did everything I told you _not_ to do."

"I apologized yoi. Told them we were sorry and hadn't meant for things go so far. That I was worried about them and just wanted to talk and promised not to do anything they were uncomfortable with, yoi." Zack nodded tiredly hearing this and replaced his hat on his head.

"That would do it I guess, if you were being sincere." Marco nodded once at the man's questioning glance. "Thought so. Those three don't trust for shit, again I don't know why. However, Little Luffy probably somehow sensed you were being truthful and gave you another chance. After what he's been through since you people stole Ace and the shit your crew pulled I don't know why he would, honestly. Never could tell what that kid was thinkin'." Zack fixed a stern glare on Marco and with a threatening tone lacing his low voice told the commander, "Don't mess up again. You got a second chance but don't expect any more. I was completely serious before when I said that those three would up and vanish if they felt the need to, so be careful with them."

"We will yoi," Marco promised.

Grunting at the First's words, Zacked asked, "You tell anyone else about them?"

"Only Pops and Thatch know. Thatch is our Fourth Division Commander and—"

"The one who was attacked by Little Luffy for invading his personal space and forcing a kid, who hates being touched by others, down using a submission hold, pinning him to the ground. Yeah, I remember Mr. Fire-Chicken."

Marco's eyes widened in shock, "What yoi?"

"All three brothers have a huge bubble of personal space that only those who have permission may enter. They are uncomfortable around large crowds of people and don't like those they don't know touching them, especially Little Luffy. Sabo is probably the best of the three but even he gets uncomfortable and needs space for a bit."

"And the growling and snarling? Does that have something to do with the youngest's Devil Fruit yoi?"

"Hahaha! Sorry, but if they haven't already talked about their abilities then I ain't sharing anything either Mr. Blue Chicken," Zack stated with a smirk. "All I _will_ say is that all three of them growl. Little Luffy is more vocal about it, but the other two brothers will do it as well. Mostly when they are upset or fighting over food with each other. Besides their strength and odd actions there is a reason me and the other idiots refer to them as the Monster Trio you know."

"What else are you willing to tell me yoi?" Zack stared down at the floor in thought.

"Who is the lead cook on your ship?"

"That would be Thatch, yoi. Why?"

"They'll be very hungry tomorrow which will make them cranky. Little Luffy and Ace prefer meat-based dishes; Sabo too, but not like them. Still, the Monsters'll eat almost anything put in front of them." Reaching behind him, Zack felt for the piece of paper he had seen on the desk upon entering the room. Bringing it in front of his face to scan over the contents and make sure he had everything listed, the cowboy held it up to the blond.

Looking over the paper and seeing it was list, Marco asked a slightly curious tone, "What's this?"

"That is a list your Head Chef will get the most use out of. Don't show it to anyone else except him. Have him ask the boys what it is and see if they'll respond. If they ask then say that I gave it to you to give to this Thatch person." Marco nodded and folded the paper up then put it in his inner jacket pocket.

Looking back down at the Spade first mate, he could see a struggle going on behind the man's eyes. The blond commander opted to wait patiently for the other to come to a decision.

Zack just continued to examine the tall man before him. He hated to do anything that might considered too revealing about his captains, but this chicken-guy seemed genuinely interested in their welfare. Over the past six months with the teens he has come to learn that they jealously guard any secrets or important knowledge about them. Sabo, Ace, and Luffy looked at the world with too much distrust for people so young. Most of what he and the Spade crew had learned came mostly from observing the three, not directly being told.

Scowling, he leaned back against the desk and rubbed the back of his neck before speaking up, "I'm kind of in a bind as to what I should or shouldn't say here." Marco stayed silent, letting the man collect his thoughts. "Gahh… Since Little Luffy decided to give you a go, guess I will too. Since you seem genuinely interested in getting those three to join your crew, listen up. You can tell the others to be careful about giving them space and not crowding them. Let them make the first move if you can, otherwise you will be fighting an uphill battle. They are very protective of each other, take advantage of that and you are in deep shit; they will leave before you blink. Do not use words like 'monster', 'demon', 'devil', 'freak', or anything like those to describe them, especially within hearing distance…and they have good ears."

Marco, confused, asked, "But you and the rest of the crew call them that yoi."

"Pfft! Not when they're on or near the ship. We're idiots, yeah, but definitely not suicidal ones!" Zack stared up at the ceiling in thought, trying to think of anything else he should let this person know. Deciding that was it, he stood up and motioned towards the two chests still in the room. "Let's get these taken care of so I can let the dumbasses outta 'jail', Mr. Chicken-Butt."

Marco's eye twitched at the stupid name but held his tongue. Grabbing a chest, he followed the man out of the room and back up to the deck.

* * *

"We just got back. What's so important that there needed to be a meeting before we got a chance to rest?"

"Does this have anything to do with the all the burnt decking and crewmen walking around wounded?"

"Burnt decking?"

"I'm surprised you didn't see it, Jiru. The area around the mainmast reeks of the scent."

"Enough you two! I want to go to bed sometime before tomorrow and get _some_ decent sleep in."

"Namur. Jiru. Izou. Let your brother speak." All eyes turned to their captain then down to the phoenix leaning against the wall by the giant bed.

"Namur, Jiru… I'm sure that by now you've already heard about our new 'brother' and the two troublemakers, yoi." Both the Eighth and Fourteenth Division Commanders nodded, albeit hesitantly.

By the time the commanders had held this meeting, the two had only been back for about an hour. In that short time-span, Namur and Jiru heard grumblings from most of the crew they'd encountered about what a crappy day it had been so far. Their siblings were either complaining about sores, being woken up and chasing a 'smiling monkey-imp' without coffee, getting tied up in the rigging, or being singed by fireballs and walls of flame. Originally, the returned commanders had believed their family was attacked by a rowdy bunch of New Worlders after the Old Man's head. Shock and bemusement settled in after discovering that the whole ship had been nearly turned on its head by only two young pirates.

"Care to tell us what you _do_ know or have heard so we can get this thing over with quickly? I want my beauty sleep and Thatch looks like he wants to return to sulking in his kitchen," Izou said. Everyone turned to gaze curiously at Thatch.

"I'm not sulking!"

Izou waved a hand absently in the air as he replied, "Fine. Pouting then."

Wanting to stop the two commanders' bickering before it got rolling, Namur and Jiru relayed what bits and pieces of the events they had been of so far. When they finished, Marco nodded before speaking and filling in the gaps.

"Right, yoi. 'Fire-Fist' Ace was the one Pops originally wanted to make our new brother. The other two who came after him are Sabo, the blond brat dressed like a gentleman, and Luffy, the much younger black-haired child with a bright red vest and straw-hat; both were crewmates of Fire-Fist's. The youngest, Luffy, caused a distraction while Sabo went and got Ace and brought him up top in an attempt to rescue the fire-brat, yoi. We caught them with Pops' help in the morning and tied them up while putting Ace back in the infirmary. They escaped under Jozu's watch and hid out for a time, reappearing after setting off several homemade smoke bombs and filling many of the corridors to the stern of the ship with smoke. We managed to capture both until the youngest got free of Thatch and attacked him before going after Izou and Vista, who had hold of Sabo, yoi." Namur looked at some of the dark and concerned looks his brothers were giving the cook.

"What happened? What do you mean Thatch was 'attacked'?" Thatch held up his bandaged arm.

"We'll explain more about it in a sec, but the short of it is that the little kid bit me." Marco held up a hand to forestall the questions his brothers were about to ask.

"Ace appeared just as I was trying to get Vista to bring Sabo over to Luffy. He attacked us with a giant fireball and then surrounded the three in a giant field of fire, yoi. After some talking, I got them to agree to let me in to speak up close. In the end, the three agreed to spend some time resting in a room. We figure they'll be asleep until morning yoi."

"Marco, you said Pops only wanted Fire-Fist at first. I am guessing that's changed?" Marco looked over at Jiru.

"Yes. He wants all three boys now, yoi."

Namur looked up at his father as he asked, "Why?"

"Our information on Ace was…extremely lacking somehow. The brat is distanced from his crew emotionally and personally, though he would defend and protect them to the best of his abilities. That much is very true according to the Spade Pirates' first mate. What we didn't know was that the brat had two others on that ship who he was extremely close with and that the rest of the crew saw these three as their leaders. It was these two younger brats who staged their cheeky assault on our home for their friend." Namur and Jiru just stared at the giant man.

"Another thing," everyone turned their attention back to the First Division Commander, "I believe that those two never showed their true abilities." Marco quickly pressed on when it looked like he was about to be interrupted, "According to the Spade crew neither the little brat, Luffy, nor the blond, Sabo, had much sleep or food for the entire time we had Ace, yoi. Their crew was especially worried about the straw hat kid because he hadn't slept _at all_ the past couple days and barely ate since we first took Ace." Thatch chose here to add some of his own observations in.

"I got a fairly good look at the kid when I pinned him and then again later when Marco and I took them to a guest room. The kid is small and very thin… Weighed hardly anything so it was easy, at first, to keep him restrained."

"What do you mean 'easy at first'? And what do you mean by 'young'?" Jiru was confused. Thatch wasn't the largest commander or pirate amongst their crew, but he wasn't small (or even weak) either. How could he have trouble with keeping down what sounds like a young, pirate-wannabe?

"And _that's_ where things go haywire," Fossa rumbled. Namur and Jiru just stared in confusion at their brothers and father.

"Huh?"

Gesturing over at Jozu, Atmos said, "Apparently, even weakened, Strawhat and Blondie were able to knock back Jozu when he first tried to get after them this mornin'." He pointed outside Pops' room next with, "The little monkey-imp—who looks like a 12-year-old—also managed to run circles around some of us commanders and about fifty or sixty of our crew this morning. Even managed to get several of us tied up in the rigging, including Haruta and Fossa here!" This last it was met with stunned silence by Namur and Jiru, who turned to look at the large man.

"Why were _you_ trying to crawl around up there?" Fossa huffed and crossed his arms at the shark-Fishman's question.

"Yeah, you're not exactly the most nimble of people on a _good_ day. What possessed you to try clambering about the rigging like a monkey? We expect that behavior out of Haruta more than _you_."

"The hell, Jiru!? Don't put me on the level of _that_ evil little twerp!" Namur looked at his (currently) youngest brother in confusion.

"Evil?"

"He is upset that the little monkey-boy caused him to get run-over by several of our brothers," Vista explained. Haruta shot a dark look at the taller swordsman, causing the older commander to hastily tack on, "including me."

"Did we forget to mention that said imp acts like a little beast? Complete with growling and snarling and," Jozu nodded to Thatch, "biting when upset?"

Namur and Jiru both raised their brows in question hearing this. Looking over to Pops for confirmation, they saw him give a bare nod.

"Umm, any ideas on why?" Marco shared a look with Izou and Vista before focusing on the Fourteenth Commander.

"We have a basic theory, yoi." Seeing he had everyone's attention again, the phoenix continued, "We think that the straw-hatted shrimp, Luffy, possesses a Devil Fruit. Either a Paramecia that can create sharp edges or a Zoan with large claws. Vista and Izou examined the site where we had the two tied up and that was their take, yoi."

Sensing more to this, Namur asked his smaller brother, "What do you think Marco?"

"I believe he is a Zoan with a predatory animal-base. He definitely has a Devil Fruit, yoi. The blond unknowingly confirmed this when I spoke of the possibility in front of him before Ace showed up."

"Predator? That's a carnivore-type Fruit right? Aren't those users super aggressive or something? That's what I've heard at least," Jiru said.

"Well, you're right about that. Kid is one snappy little beast when riled. Should have heard him growling when Pops confronted them this morning during their first attempt; certainly didn't sound very human," Izou remarked.

"What I still want to know is," everyone turned to Curiel, "what was that…I want to say dark or terrifying but it wasn't quite that… You know, that _feeling_ which was released when Pops faced them." All eyes drew to meet with their father's yellow orbs.

"I do not know my sons. I couldn't tell who it came from at the time, except that I had only felt a shadow of something similar. It was back when we first took Ace from that Island where he faced Jinbei. All three brats were present at the same time then, too." The giant man shifted to face Marco as he inquired, "Did Ace's first mate or crew mention anything about the three's abilities?" The phoenix shook his head in the negative.

"No, yoi. I tried asking but he refused to answer with anything except us 'idiots will have to find out for ourselves.' He was forthcoming on some other details, but none that gave away his leaders' powers. Whole crew is stubborn and loyal to a fault yoi."

"What _did_ they tell you then? You were able to find out anything about the brats' pasts?"

"Yes and no, Pops." The First Commander glanced around at his siblings to include them in the next portion of the discussion. "According to Zack, the Spade first mate, those three have been together since before he joined. They started the Spade Pirates and only started recruiting other members when they got close to the Red Line, yoi."

"But the Spades showed up about, what, eight or nine months ago? We started collecting info on them around two or three months afterwards and they had more than three members then," Haruta let out.

"True, but Zack was the first to join and he did so only about six months ago. Their last member joined just before they left Saboady for Fishman Island, yoi."

"Then why were they so damn loyal? Our info wasn't wrong about that if what Izou said was true," Blamenco added.

"What did Izou say?"

"Tell you later Thatch, you'll love it!" Thatch beamed at the mischievous light in the Sixteenth Commander's dark eyes. Even more so when the man gave the barest tilt if his head in Marco's direction.

"Back to what I was saying, yoi, they were loyal because even though their leaders were 'three crazy-ass monsters', they still protected them with everything they had." Namur frowned.

"Bit much to call them 'monsters' isn't it?" Rakuyo shot a look at the Eighth Division leader.

"Not if you saw how they fought, even on little or no energy. 'Monsters' would be very fitting if they ever fought at full strength, I think. The growling from the tiny one or the fiery sight from hell in the form of Ace didn't help either."

"About the growling, turns out that all three are prone to it. Not just Luffy yoi. Sabo and Ace just do it less often than the youngest." Everyone stared in shock at the phoenix. Only the First noticed the amused glint in their father's eyes.

Turning to stare up the giant captain, Haruta commented, "Oi, Pops. You adopt those three then Stefan will a have run for title of 'Resident Beast of the Whitebeards'."

Namur had been thinking silently to himself for most of the conversation since the revelation about Luffy maybe possessing a carnivore-type Zoan Fruit. Form what he knew such types were typically more aggressive than normal people or other Fruit-user types. Didn't they also become much more unstable mentally the more stressed they became? Something about their animal-base taking over… Marco had said he could feel when the Phoenix in him became restless or wanted out and he had to fight against its desires.

Seeing his brother's serious expression and the silence he hadn't broken in a couple minutes, Vista asked, "You okay Namur? What's wrong?" Conversation halted as all eyes turned to the Fishman commander.

Fixing his almost black eyes on the First Division Commander he asked in a low voice, "How dangerous is the small child right now, Marco?"

The commanders stilled in shock at the tone. Their brother was implying that the little brat was a major threat to their crew with how he had asked at that question. The last they'd seen, the possible Zoan Fruit-user had been on the brink of collapse. How could he be dangerous?

Marco flicked his eyes to Whitebeard and then Thatch, meeting their gazes before roving his blues over the forms of his other brothers in the large room. He didn't like how the topic had come up, but he couldn't deny the caution he saw in his blue-skinned sibling's gaze. It was completely understandable, what with their prior experiences with such Zoan-based users and also Marco to back up or dispel certain stories. The phoenix had wanted to catch his brothers up to speed on the events that had transpired since they left but he also wanted to share some of his findings and new ideas to help better prepare his family. The three brothers were a unique case that could very well blow up in their faces, spectacularly so, if they went about this wrong. He wouldn't disclose the nature of their relationship and jeopardize what tenuous trust he'd been given, but Marco could at least make hints to their closeness and help his family go from there.

"Again, their ex-first mate refused to tell me of what the other two's abilities were yoi. That said, I found what looked to be claw-marks scratched into the floor of the cabin the three shared on their old ship. The odd scent the shrimp has lends to the theory he is a Zoan-type, except that I have no clue what he could be, yoi. There was a nest of blankets in their old room with lots of claw-marks about it and some odd spots along the wall above that looked to have been rubbed against by something hard. Whatever his animal-base is, it's big yoi."

"You're not answering my question, Marco," Namur interrupted. "How dangerous is the young one?"

"He's just a kid Namur!" The Fishman turned to look at the upset Fourth Commander.

"The brat may be 'just a kid', Thatch, but he is a kid that still managed to elude our family while apparently starved and deprived of sleep!" The chef flinched at his brother's tone and words. "That 'kid' managed to do real damage to your arm with just a bite from what I've been told. Marco," the Eighth Commander nodded at the phoenix, "knows that predatory-type Zoans are extremely dangerous and mentally unstable when in the same condition as this kid supposedly is. I just want to know so that I can better protect our family." Thatch looked down to the side, holding his injured arm lightly.

He understood the need to protect family, but Thatch was also driven by the guilt he still felt over what had caused the small boy to even be put in that situation. He knew Marco felt some of the same. The man's face when he came back from the Spades' ship had said it all.

"Thatch," the chef looked up at his father, "Namur is right in a way. We need to know how dangerous the child could be…for our safety and his. We know that you are upset over recent discoveries, however this is so that we can also better care for the child while ensuring no one gets hurt." With a reluctant nod, Thatch acquiesced to his father's decision.

"Namur-yoi. Honestly I can't say how dangerous the brat is. I tried to question Zack on it but he flat-out told me he wouldn't divulge anything the three brats hadn't made obvious." Marco silenced his brothers' remarks with a look. Continuing on in an even, firm tone he said, "While he wouldn't say anything, he did give some tips on how interact with the three so that nothing too negative would happen yoi."

Looking between Thatch and Namur, Kingdew asked, "We follow _these…guidelines_ and we won't have to worry about a snarling imp-beast running about biting people?"

"Well it's not like we can do much worse. The brats already hate us and don't trust us to be within even twenty feet of them," Rakuyo stated. "The hothead tried to torch anyone who got close and the blond glared icy daggers at everyone else. The only one who didn't try to maim us was the little, straw-hatted imp and he was growling the entire time."

"Please continue Marco. What should we do so that we don't have a repeat of this entire day?" Vista didn't like having to hunt down a kid and fight him, especially after finding out the state said child was in.

"I was told that Ace, Sabo, and Luffy are all uncomfortable in crowds or around people they don't know, yoi. They don't like being touched by others they aren't familiar with either. Luffy seems to be especially bad with this yoi."

"Which is part of the reason we think he bit and attacked me. The kid did it because he got extremely scared." Izou patted his brother on his uninjured arm in comfort.

Marco waited until he had the others' attention again before continuing. "He also said that the three rarely separate. If they do, one is always keeping an eye on the youngest yoi. They also sleep in the same room and often in the same bed."

Izou huffed out, "Their ex-first mate was often the one that had to go wake them up in the morning and told us it isn't uncommon to catch them sleeping together. The room itself had two locks, one of which could only be locked or unlocked from the inside."

Several commanders' eyes widened at this. Just how close _were_ those three? And their old crew just accepted it? The youngest was still a child and the older two didn't even look past twenty!

Whitebeard and Thatch calmly snuck looks around the room at the others, silently chuckling at the conclusions most were coming to thanks to Izou's statement. Marco just sighed and shook his head.

Speaking over the low din to redirect their focus he said, "The three are also very defensive of each other yoi. Because of this, and the fact they never leave the youngest alone, we have to be careful in approaching them. If the straw-hat kid becomes too uncomfortable, then the other two will attack yoi."

"And we'll know the youngest isn't happy with our presence, how?"

"Didn't you hear, Jiru? He growls. A lot! Fire-Fist almost set my hair on fire when I got too close and the brat started growling," Rakuyo grumbled aloud.

"That reminds me," Izou turned to the First Commander, "what were you whispering to Thatch earlier before you two went over to them?"

"That? The blue chicken told me what I should do if the kid started growling at me."

"Thatch, if you don't stop with the damn bird jokes for the rest of this evening I'll burn a hole in all your pants to match the one Ace gave you, yoi." Izou and Haruta started laughing at hearing this.

"Oh my god! That's where it came from? I thought you tried to pull something on Marco again and he caught you!"

"Shut it, Haruta! That was a good pair of pants that had to be thrown away!"

Namur cut in before the fighting could get started, "Marco, please tell us what to do so that we don't upset the three when we try to talk to them." Marco smirked at Thatch but did as asked when he caught the curious looks of the other commanders and their father.

"I tried to test it out before when I approached them in Ace's fire barrier, yoi. It seemed to work and I adjusted it for Thatch to try when he tried to get close to them."

"You mean you weren't even sure!? I could've been barbecued! What about my hair!?"

"Shut up, Thatch," Jozu, Blamenco and Jiru said. Haruta quietly snickered at the cook's dramatized look of affront.

"What seems to work best is making sure Luffy sees you coming, yoi. Don't move too fast and, if you get close, don't make any sudden movements. I have a feeling that, whether the youngest growls at that point or not, the older pair _will_ react, yoi." Nods met this warning, though Thatch continued to sulk. "If you get close but Starwhat starts growling, just raise your hands to show you aren't a threat. I think it also helps to say what you wish to do with them while also promising to leave if they don't want you near at some point." Marco paused and looked at Thatch for a few seconds before adding, "It might also help to not look directly at them, yoi. Thatch was able to approach a little faster than me and Luffy seemed a touch more relaxed when he had his eyes focused on the ground and not the three brats like I did."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were telling us how to befriend a wild animal, brother," Blenheim muttered.

"That might actually be the best way to view this situation." Everyone turned to Vista as he said thoughtfully, "If you think about it, those three reacted too strongly towards our actions. Yes, we took someone they cared about, however the force of their reactions was completely disproportionate."

"I am in agreement with your brother. We must be careful and considerate in our actions with your new 'brothers'." Whitebeard met the concerned gazes of his sons before saying, "We unknowingly caused two youths harm by taking someone very dear to them. This we must apologize for and admit our mistake, myself especially so. Something has happened to those brats that has caused them to show immense distrust in anyone but each other. Before I could only sense anger and rage from the youngest, which turned to fear when he saw his friend caught. Those emotions almost entirely vanished from the child when Ace came and stood at their side. While all three brats still gave off a sense of anger, it was muted and dull compared to before then."

Pops' words marked an end to the meeting. The commanders all readied to leave the room and turn in for the night. Marco was about to leave before another idea hit him.

"Two more things yoi." Fossa shut the door as all eyes went back to the phoenix. "Do not lie when you talk to them. If Luffy feels you aren't being sincere and are trying to lie, Zack says the other two will immediately distrust that person and it will be hell to get any trust afterwards, yoi. We are also to avoid calling them or using words like 'monster', 'demon', 'freak', and such to describe them."

"But didn't you say that their crew described them as the 'Monster Trio'?" Marco looked over Fossa.

"Zack said that the crew may be bunch of idiots but they 'weren't suicidal ones', yoi. They never spoke like that so long as those three were nearby. Ace, Sabo, and Luffy were neither on the ship nor in the immediate vicinity of the ship during those times."

"Great. Now that this is over with, I am going to get some much needed sleep. The stress of today is going to give me wrinkles if I don't get some quality rest."

Smiling at his Izou's remark, Marco went to catch up with Thatch and give him that list Zack had entrusted him with. He was curious as to what kind of list it was and hoped the cook might shed some light on it.

* * *

"Seriously, Izou, go back! Marco sent _me_ to get them because they already _know_ me!"

"Nonsense. I shall accompany you because staying back there is boring."

"You just want to see if it's true that they sleep together, you lying skirt-wearer!"

"Better than a skirt- _chaser_ , you giant flirt!"

"But really, Izou. Won't you please go back? I don't want our fiery new brother to put _another_ hole in my pants because _you_ put him in a bad mood."

A loud rumbling growl interrupted the crossdresser's retort. Both commanders stopped walking down the empty hall upon hearing the odd sound.

"The hell was that?" Izou asked.

"Dunno, but it was louder than even the Old Man's snoring," Thatch said.

They looked around as the noise sounded again, echoing along the walls around them. Following the disturbing grumbling sounds, they realized that the origin lay behind the door where the three 'soon to be brothers' were sleeping since yesterday.

"Well… Now we know they're hungry at least."

"What would we ever do without you around to point out the obvious, Thatch?"

"Shut up! Just stand back while I wake them up so they don't see you immediately." Muttering about stupid, bossy chefs the Sixteenth Division leader complied with his brother's request.

Thatch knocked on the door a couple times but didn't get a response. Frowning, he tried again only a little harder. Still he received no response from the three inside.

' _Oh gods, please tell me they aren't so weak from hunger that they can't even move!'_

Sending a concerned look to Izou, Thatch went to open the door. Twisting the handle and pushing against the wood, he was surprised to find the door not moving.

"What the hell, Thatch? Just open it already," Izou whispered impatiently.

"I'm trying but I think it's locked." The geisha stared the man like he was an idiot.

"Did you somehow fry your brains making breakfast? The guest rooms _don't lock!_ "

Thatch glared at his brother while pushing against the door. He hissed back, "I know that, but something is making it hard to open the damn door!"

"Move over, you oaf." With that Izou helped Thatch to try and force the door open.

It took a few minutes, with some added cursing and throwing of insults between the two commanders, but they were finally able to open the door a half-foot. What had made the door so difficult to open was the bare bed shoved up against it. The two stared at the bed, bemused at the lack of bodies that was supposed to be using it for sleep. They also noticed that aside from the bare covering of the mattress, all the other sheets and pillows were gone off of it.

"Hmmm…I thought at least one of them would use the bed. It may not be big enough for all three, but Ace or Sabo with the youngest could have squeezed onto it." Thatch nodded absently to his brother's comment.

"Well, I guess I know why they wanted so many blankets and pillows now." He turned to glance at red and white kimono-clad man as he quietly asked, "Didn't you say that you saw a 'nest' or something back in their old room on their ship?"

Izou nodded with a slight 'hm' to confirm the other's question. Pushing against the door a bit harder, he gestured for the chef to push against the bed frame to move it away from the door some. They went about the task quietly so as not to disturb the still sleeping trio. Their stomachs may be rumbling but the light snores gave away their obviousness to the world. Once the commanders got the door opened wide enough to comfortably fit their upper bodies through the gap they leaned in to take a look about the room.

Their eyes finally landed on the sight of a pile of sheets and pillows in the middle of the room. Both were a little stunned at what they saw there. Ace was laid out on his back, bandage free, with his right arm flung out to the side. His left circled almost protectively around the smallest boy's back, who was lying face-down and sprawled half-way across Ace's chest. Luffy's head was turned away from them and faced to the right, his right arm trapped between his chest and Ace's. Sabo lay belly-side down on the blankets with his head resting on Ace's right arm close to the older raven's shoulder and his face turned towards the smaller raven's back. Long, curly golden hair covered his right eye. The blond's left side was covered by a blanket, but his right arm was hooked about the smaller boy's lower back and circled around to the underside of the younger's stomach.

What made the whole thing rather awkward for Izou and Thatch was that the boys appeared to be sleeping in the nude. Ace didn't even have his bandages on anymore. The blankets were tangled around the boys' legs, arms, and (thankfully) waists. Otherwise, the Sixteenth and Fourth Commanders feared they would have been treated to a view that could make even hardy sailors blush every time they looked at the three.

Suffice to say, Thatch and Izou were struck somewhat speechless by the sight. Both men had a small blush growing on their cheeks from the sheer intimacy of the boys in this moment.

Looking at the three boys, the geisha-dresser wanted to describe them as innocent angels. The way they slept was like looking at gentle, untouched innocence personified. What ruined it was the intimate picture the scene painted in his mind. He knew Zack had said they often slept together and that the crew had often seen them sleeping together… The door to the trio's room also had an additional lock on it…

' _But it's really like_ this _!? They're too young! The small one is_ especially _too young to be doing things like this!'_

Thatch was having some fun sneaking glances at the three brothers and the faces Izou was making at being confronted with the sight before them. Yeah, he thought it odd the three supposed "brothers" slept like _this_ ; he would admit to that easily. But seeing how protective and close they were yesterday and then hearing how they roomed on their ship, Thatch _sorta_ expected something like this.

' _But not them actually sleeping in their birthday suits with each other! What kind of "brothers"_ are they _to do that?'_

Pink-faced and not looking forward to the brothers waking up to the sight of being spied on, Thatch knocked on the door a little harder. Taking a deep, calming breath (and praying he won't get roasted) he called out, "Hey, you three! It's breakfast time and we thought you were hungry!"

They heard a stomach growl, but none of the trio moved or made any other sound.

Izou, with a darker blush staining his face than Thatch's, turned to the cook and asked, "You think they're too hungry to move or wake? Do we need to get them to the infirmary?"

Thatch was about respond when a low groan carried out from the boys' nest. Turning to the source, they saw that it came from Sabo.

The blond groaned again. Tightening his hold on Luffy, he tried to drag the boy from his position across Ace while muttering, "Oi, Aaacce…give Lu baaack…"

"Hmmm…" Ace's right arm curled around the back of Sabo's shoulders, pulling the blond teen's head onto the fire-user's own shoulder. "M'not g'd 'nough?"

Thatch and Izou were becoming extremely red now. Just what _was_ the nature of these boys' relationship? The brunet thought they'd been telling the truth earlier about being brothers and Marco had told him some of what their (ex) first mate had said. ' _Though…both boys, especially Ace, were really tense when they told us about them being brothers. Perhaps they thought we caught them in a lie?'_

Izou was trying not to make sound. He wanted squeal in delight at the cute scene the boys made, but he also wanted yell in outrage at the older for corrupting the young one at the same time. The way Ace and Sabo spoke even half-asleep hinted that this was a very common and natural setting for them.

Sabo tried to pull Luffy to him again but Ace's arm had also tightened its grip on the youngest. Groaning in protest at the other's actions, the blond gave another slight tug and mumbled, "Lu s'ft n' cu'dly… You n't." Both older boys were frowning a little now.

The tug-o-war on the youngest seemed to rouse Luffy for a second. The smallest let out a little whine and shifted on top of the fire teen.

With a small smile on the half of his face in the commanders' sight, Sabo gave Luffy another tiny tug. "C'mere Lu…"

Stretching his trapped arm out to grab onto Ace's left side, the little raven shifted his head to face the door. With his face scrunched into the hints of a pout Luffy let out another quiet whine, "Aaaccce…"

Geisha and cook were trying not to coo at the adorableness as they hid partially behind the door. They watched as a large, happy, lazy smile lit up Ace's face at Luffy's whine. Sabo's smile was replaced with a pouty frown.

"Hehehe… Lu like me m're…" Ace mumbled, squeezing Sabo's shoulders while shifting his grip on Luffy to rub the kid's back.

Thatch smiled at how carefree and happy Ace sounded.

"'Nly 'cause yer hot… 'Tupid," muttered the blond, face still set in a tired pout.

Izou and Thatch were stunned at the boys' actions. Right now it was more than obvious that these three were partners in life one way or another. The kimono-clad man still didn't approve of the relationship he _thought_ the three were involved in on account of the boys' suspected ages; the Head Chef was wondering if the trio were only just brothers or if they were also something more. However, for both men this scene confirmed how very wrong it was of the Whitebeard Pirates to try and split them up. Seeing the intimacy and closeness between the teens helped the older pirates understand Luffy's, Sabo's, and Ace's actions and reactions the day prior.

* * *

Luffy scrunched his nose. A scent tickled it but he tried to ignore the intrusion into his peaceful rest.

He was tired and wanted to keep sleeping. Ace was nice and warm and _right there_. Hearing Sabo and Ace argue as they slowly woke was normal when they slept like this.

' _Just a bad dream…_ ' The thought made him frown a little.

But what had been a bad dream? He thinks something bad happened…something about Ace… But Ace was right here. Luffy was sleeping on him again, hearing the comforting sound of his brother's steady and strong heart in the equally warm and strong chest. Ace's arm was rubbing his upper back the way Luffy liked after napping with his brother.

Sabo's arm was around his middle and holding him tight and secure. His blond brother was against his body's lower half and one leg crossed over Luffy's. Lu could feel himself partially wedged between both of his big brothers, so Sabo was probably also using Ace as a pillow.

Everything seemed normal to him… They were sleeping like they usually did when he wasn't in his larger form. Ace on one side, him in the middle, Sabo on the other. Sabo liked being warm and got cold easier than Luffy and Ace, so he would sleep either next to Ace with Luffy on top of them both or cuddle against Luffy while sleeping on part of Ace. Luffy didn't like feeling alone and loved being in contact with his brothers so he usually slept in the middle where could snuggle up against both Ace and Sabo. Ace always took the outside so he could see what was going on around them when they woke up and be able to defend his younger brothers.

That scent tickled his nose again. Why did it bother him? Why would he think that Ace might not be next to him when he woke up? Why did it feel like his 'bad dream' was worse than the usual ones?

Waking up a bit more, Luffy focused on the odd scent he was detecting. ' _Wrong… Why does our nest smell wrong? It doesn't have Ace or Sabo or me in it…_ '

Another set of scents came to his attention. One that had a slight musk with smoke and spices mixed into it with an overlying smell of dried blood. The other was also a light musk with a hint of gunpowder and flint and had an overlying light, sweet scent like some Human females wear.

Luffy frowned as he woke up further. He did not recognize those scents. None on their crew smelled like that. It was then his mind was assaulted with the memories of the past several days.

His eyes shot open, body tensing and letting out a warning growl at the two strangers he had immediately spotted.

* * *

The spying commanders were just as startled by the sudden dark growl as the older brothers were.

Izou and Thatch glanced down and noticed Luffy glaring and growling up at them with his body completely tense. The child had raised himself up off of Ace's body a few inches and was hunched over the older raven-hair protectively.

Ace and Sabo came wide awake at Luffy's warning. Sensing intruders in their room, Ace flared up and covered the two younger brothers in a protective flaming cloak.

The two commanders jumped back with a yelp as a rush flames flew at them. Diving to the sides of the doorway, the fireball exploded as it hit the wall opposite the room. Thankfully it only scorched the wood rather than blowing out the entire section of wall.

Ace's shoulder-length, curly, dark hair waved about in the heat created from his fire. He had a wall erected at the entrance to the room to prevent others from getting in easily. It was hot but not burning the surrounding wood yet.

He and Sabo finally remembered where exactly they were and had their guard up. They would not be taken by surprise again. Sitting up, Ace moved Luffy off to the side and behind him while Sabo crouched to his right. Both stared at the door doused in flame, waiting for any sign of retaliation.

"Looks like our new brother is not a morning person…" Thatch mumbled. He glared over at Izou and muttered angrily, "This is your fault! I _told_ you it would be a bad idea for two of us to show up. He almost got my hair!"

"Oh shut up, Thatch! It's not my fault the little one got upset and made Ace go off like a firecracker! Besides, are you sure it wasn't your ugly face that scared the little brat?"

"I'm pretty sure it was you and that makeup you're wearing. You look like a blood-spattered ghost or something!"

Fed up with the peeping pirates' bickering, Sabo cleared his throat loudly to get their attention. Both commanders quieted and rose up from their seated positions on the floor. Wary of any flying flames and the fire shrouding the doorway, they slowly maneuvered their heads to look through the partially open door at the three teens.

Though it was hard to see through the fire, they saw Sabo stand up from the nest with the other two. Both commanders were relieved to see that the blankets had only been covering the fact each had pants on (Luffy his shorts, Sabo and Ace their boxers) and not that the three were nude. Without their hats and standing still, Izou and Thatch could see Ace's long and curly black locks that brushed the tops of his shoulders. Sabo's hair was fluffier but just as curly and long with part of his bangs covering his left eye. Luffy's hair, almost darker than Ace's, came within an inch of his shoulders and a long set of ragged bangs hung in front of his eyes; in contrast to the older brothers' curly hair, his was almost completely straight. All three had a bad case of bedhead, though Luffy's was definitely worst.

If he didn't know saying it aloud would likely end with him going up in flames, Thatch would have commented that the matching looks made the brothers look cute. One just had to ignore the hateful and distrusting glares being aimed at the two commanders. Plus the flames coating all three, again, and making the boys look menacing even when clad in only shorts/boxers.

"Might I inquire as to what you two gentlemen were planning on doing in here? As well as why you were spying on us?" The brothers carefully tracked the older pirates' movements, ready to act the second the sensed a threat.

Izou and Thatch were a little shocked at the amount of ice lacing the blond's polite words. The tone made the questions sound like threatening demands. The geisha-pirate was very disheartened to hear the younger male speak like this. He wondered at the kind of life these three had lived to make Sabo speak like that in such a natural way.

Thatch saw the look on his brother's face and sympathized with his sibling. The cook was also upset at the ease with which the blond brother spoke so coldly. Gesturing for the cross-dresser to step back (but remaining in brothers' sight when he saw them stiffen slightly), Thatch slowly approached the flames covering the door while keeping his in view and open.

"Sorry to startle you, we didn't mean to. It's just," he paused, noticing Luffy sidle closer to Ace and gripping Sabo's arm. Licking his lips and conscious of the brothers' cold and analyzing stares, he continued, "It's breakfast time. You guys were sleeping since yesterday afternoon and, um, I don't think you had dinner yesterday right? So I thought you might be hungry and would like something to eat."

Luffy continued to stare at the large man with funny hair. He didn't sense any deceit in the Human's words, only truth so far. Lu may be hungry but these Humans had, in his eyes, tried to stay silent in their approach. This was something not generally done with good intent. One only makes no sound when stalking and trying to get close to prey.

/Ask why silent and sneak./

Since Lu didn't address the man's earlier words, the older brothers inferred that he had been telling the truth. Or some version of it, at least.

"So you came to inform us that it was time for breakfast and see if we would be interested about partaking in the meal? Is that all?" Sabo asked a cold monotone. Sea-blue eyes reminiscent of the ocean's freezing depths bored into the hazel and brown eyes of the older pirates.

Thatch just stared at the younger man, puzzled as to what he had just asked. Honestly, most of the other's speech had sort of sailed over his head. "Huh?"

Izou huffed and folded his hands into his kimono's sleeves. "Uncultured idiot. He asked if the only reason we came was to see if they wanted to eat something."

Twisting to shoot a petulant look at his brother Thatch retorted, "I got it! No need to insult me, Mr. I-Look-Like-A-Murdered-Ghost!"

Luffy eased up his tense muscles slightly and loosened his hold on his brothers. He didn't sense anything bad from the Human talking to them, though Luffy remained wary of the other. After all, this was the one who had held him down and also one of the two he held responsible for trying to keep him from getting to Sabo. Lu had absolutely despised this Human at that moment, and he wouldn't forget the feeling of being at the other's mercy while his brother was being taken away from him.

Sabo and Ace could sense snippets of the youngest's emotions and thoughts, but they were no more than bare shadows. Being so tightly woven with Luffy mentally the past couple of days had seriously strained Sabo and ended up giving him a terrible migraine. Ace was in a similar state even though he had been in less contact with their younger brother. He hadn't been very stable mentally at the time (on account of the fractured skull, concussion, and serious beating) so overusing his Fruit-abilities in combination with connecting so deeply with Luffy, even for a little while, had brought back his own pulsing migraine. Luffy's epic fit yesterday hadn't been good for the older teens either.

Lu had apologized early this morning when they first woke up and had him Shift back. Both Ace and Sabo waved him off while saying it wasn't his fault, Human and Drakkón minds simply functioned differently. They would just have to remain in light contact until their brains stopped trying to kill them.

Thatch had turned back to facing the three brothers in time to notice the youngest relaxing a little. The kid still stared at him in a way that made it obvious the cook wasn't trusted and that he was wary of him. It stung the kind-hearted man but he couldn't blame the kid.

"Um, inviting you to breakfast was the main reason we stopped by, but we also wanted to see how you three were doing." Sabo flicked his gaze to meet Ace's before dropping down to glance at Luffy. The younger wasn't reacting, positively or negatively, so the older two waited for the white-uniformed man to continue. "None of you looked to be feeling very well yesterday, especially the little guy, so we were worried about how might be feeling this morning."

Ace didn't trust any of these people. Luffy wasn't picking up on any lies the other might be telling but that didn't mean the guy was telling the honest truth. Just what he believed the truth to be. When the man looked at Lu, Ace pulled his baby brother closer to him and put his arm around Lu's shoulders. Sabo also visibly shifted nearer his brothers, placing himself slightly in front of Luffy.

"Then why were you bastards sneaking into our room?" Ace growled. The fires crackled in response to their master's ire, growing hotter near where Thatch and Izou stood.

"We tried knocking but you wouldn't answer." The boys looked behind Thatch at Izou. Moving his brother to the side so the brats could see him better, the Sixteenth continued, "We got worried that you were so unwell that you couldn't get up and needed help. We tried to open the door but when it wouldn't budge we just got more worried. When the door finally opened enough for us to check on you we saw that you were still dead asleep." Izou blushed a little at the mention of the brothers' sleeping arrangement.

Luffy gripped Sabo's arm a little tighter upon seeing the funny-dressed Human. This one had helped the larger Human to try and take Sabo away. The man hadn't lied, but he didn't Sabo near him just in case this Human tried to take him again.

The commanders caught Luffy's small movement. Izou was a little confused as to why the brat's dark eyes seemed to darken with dislike upon seeing him. The kid had been warming up to his chef brother even though he didn't lose the wary or guarded look directed at the man. So why was the brat eyeing him like Izou stole his gold or something?

Ace loosed a small growl. "That still doesn't explain why you were watching us so quietly. Are you bastards not just kidnappers but also creeps who spy on people when they're sleeping?" he ground out.

Thatch shoved Izou back while waving his hands before him and franticly saying, "No! No nonono!" He winced at the way his rapid movement caused the three to stiffen up and Luffy to move back an inch with a low growl. ' _Dammit! Marco warned me not to forget that._ '

Taking a breath and stilling himself, Thatch looked the brothers in the eye to make sure they could see how serious he was being. "Sorry about that. Um, we didn't _mean_ to spy on you guys. We were just confused as to why the bed was empty and against the door. It took a couple seconds for us to spot you in your giant pile of bedding." Luffy stopped his growling but kept an eye on the man, glancing behind him occasionally to see how the other Huma was reacting to the words. "I knocked again on the door and called out to you saying that breakfast was ready. It was supposed to wake you guys up and let you know we were here without startling you. Guess that part didn't really pan out, huh?" Thatch finished while rubbing the nape of his neck sheepishly.

Gradually, Lu relaxed his hold on his brothers. He didn't let go of them, but he was no longer squeezing them. The Human was being truthful to them and seemed like an honest individual. The man definitely wasn't Bad, instead Luffy felt he was a Good Human. He wasn't quite sure about the Man-Lady but they didn't come across as Bad either.

After Lu gave them the verdict, Sabo relaxed his stance and Ace withdrew his fire. Not completely though; he still kept a light wreath of it around Sabo and Luffy in the off-chance these bastards tried anything. He recognized the guy dressed in white with his yellow neck-tie thing as the one Luffy had bitten yesterday. The person in the red and white robe-gown was also one of those who had been standing near the blue flame-man and holding onto Sabo.

Izou watched as Ace and Sabo exchanged glances before looking down at the smaller child. The kid didn't meet their eyes and kept staring at him and Thatch instead. Still, Izou had the feeling a conversation he wasn't privy to was occurring between the three young pirates.

Sabo turned his head to face the commanders as he spoke evenly, "I guess we'll take that offer of breakfast. However…"He glanced at Lu in concern. His brother didn't like crowds of people he didn't know, and a ship of this size would probably have a lot of people crowded into their galley.

"Ah! If you're worried about crowding, we have that covered! We realized you three don't like having lots of people around you so we waited until most of our siblings finished eating. There's probably only a few in there right now and since our mess hall is so big you don't need to sit close to them." The masked relief on Sabo and Ace's faces warmed the chef. He'd been anxious over the possibility of them not accepting and having to find some other way to coax the brothers out of the room.

"Thank you for the consideration," Sabo said as he bobbed in a half-bow to the commanders while maintaining a watchful eye. "If you would be so kind as to leave? We would like to make ourselves more presentable before going with you."

Thatch nodded and closed the door. Once shut, he let out the shiver he'd been suppressing. Seriously, how did that kid develop the ability to talk like _that_? Marco was banking on the tiny straw-hat kid being the source of that uncomfortable and horribly oppressing feeling they felt yesterday morning. Thatch was starting to think it may have come from Sabo now that he's talked with the teen.

* * *

Sabo looked down at himself before glaring at his (slightly) older brother. With a chilling, close-eyed smile he asked the fire-user, "Ace? Do you know what happened to my clothes?"

"Don't give me that creepy-ass look and talk like that! I didn't do _anything_ to them! They're over by Lu's hat and vest in the corner, see? Why do always blame me if they go missing in the middle of the night? Why not Luffy!?"

"Because _Lu_ doesn't accidentally torch things in his sleep and _you_ _do_ , charcoal-brain!"

Luffy chuckled at his brothers' bickering, enjoying the feeling of familiarity and letting himself relax as he listened to it.

* * *

Thatch and Izou stood outside the door waiting for the three boys to finish dressing.

"Are they really arguing over whether Ace burned their clothes or not like it's a common thing?"

"It seems that this has happened several times before. But I want to know how they know each other! Is it really that normal for kids their age to be so comfortable with the idea of sleeping in the nude together?"

"They weren't naked, Izou."

"Close enough! It's our job as their new big brothers to teach them that it is not okay to corrupt one so young and innocent as the small brat—Luffy."

" _Innocent_? Did you not see him yesterday? I'm pretty sure your ghostly face did but, just in case, let me be so kind as to remind you: he _viciously bit my arm and kicked my ass across the deck!_ How the hell is that 'innocent'?"

"Hmph! I remember, you idiot! I just think he is too young to be subjected to whatever nightly activities those older two boys might be up to."

"I seriously doubt there is anything going on between them, brother."

Just then, the commanders heard Luffy's voice echo out from the room. Izou swallowed his retort to Thatch so that they could listen in. Both soon had blushes staining their cheeks again.

 _"Mmmmm…. Yeeeaaah~ Right there!~"_

 _"Geez, Lu. Don't turn into a limp mess just from that, idiot. Sabo, help me with this so we can go eat!"_

 _"Fine. How's this feel Lu?"_

 _"Ooooh~ …Aaaaahhh~ …. Awesooome!~ ….Gah, you're the best!"_

Izou raised an eyebrow and threw a silent look that screamed 'See? I told you so!' at his brother. "So… There's probably nothing indecent going on, huh?"

Thatch gave the door a flustered and bemused glance, flushing at the ideas the voices conjured. Turning to face his brother, he stubbornly insisted, "Right! I'm sure it's just a misunderstanding and nothing is actually going on!" Silently, the chef tacked on, ' _I hope. What the hell kind of brothers_ are _they!?'_

* * *

 **A/N: Did you guys like it? Wasn't sure how to end it and the chapter was getting pretty long. Sorry not too much happened. Not quite a filler but I think it came pretty damn close. At least next time we get to find out what was _really_ going on in the room with the ASL trio (don't worry; nothing inappropriate occurred, just wanted the commanders to sweat a little). Sorry if it sounds a little rushed at the end. If enough people complain about it I will go back and clean it up, but I just really really wanted to finish the chapter so I could start on the next one!**

 **But hey! Now ASL gets to meet some of the commanders and yes, there will be laughs (and Ace will probably be cursing here and there again and just being a potty-mouth).**

 **Yay! New terms! Yes, there is a reason I played up on Sabo's and Ace's names. That will come up later but I won't specify when…other than later.**

 **Atce —[Ā-ts; honestly, sounds very much like "Ace" but with slight 'ts' instead of 'ss'] Meaning "fire(s)" or "flame(s)"**

 **Sávbó —[Ss-ah-vb ō; 'vbó' is like 'vo' in 'volt' with a slight 'b' sound between 'vv' and 'oh'] Meaning "wave" or "waves" (as in sea waves or river/lake waves); comes from the sound waves make when hitting the shore**


	7. Meeting Whitebeard!

**A/N: Here we are with a new chapter!**

 **As an update to the poll about Ace/Marco vs Ace &Marco, how is this idea? To make everyone happy I think that I'll make this story an Ace&Marco relationship. When I get far enough in I'll make a second version that has Ace/Marco in it. Won't be for several more chapters though if I do this, otherwise I might accidentally write two completely different stories and I'd like to keep the focus on Luffy. Came up with this idea because it's been a week and even after several votes there is STILL A TIE! Tell me what you think of this people, please.**

 **Couldn't think of a good title name for chapter (again) so just went with what Luffy did. Honestly didn't know** ** _why_** **I thought I could dictate how the meeting was supposed to go considering Luffy was involved. Seriously, Plans + Luffy = Total Destruction, complete with pretty flashes of light and sparkly confetti. Tell me what you all think! And does anyone sound too OOC? Of course ASL will be a little different from usual but want to try and get at least Whitebeard + Commanders personalities somewhat correct.**

 **UPDATE: Because there seems to be some confusion I will try to clarify something. As stated above, this story will feature only Ace &Marco and NOT Ace/Marco. For those who have trouble discerning between the two: A&M = bros, A/M = yaoi (BxB, Male x Male, etc).**

 **P.S. This also means vote over the topic (discussed in previous chapter's A/N) is also closed.**

 **Disclaimers!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Meeting Whitebeard! Luffy's Hijacking and Ace's Declaration**

* * *

Thatch and Izou stepped back upon seeing the boys' door open. Already knowing that the three didn't like strangers at their back, Thatch pulled his brother to stand next to him in the direction leading to the galley.

Luffy was being piggybacked by Ace and was resting his head on the older brother's right shoulder, straw hat resting against his back. Sabo stood a few inches behind them on Ace's right with his left hand holding onto the hem of Luffy's red vest. The faded black top hat and blue goggles sat atop his head. Ace had his yellow shirt back on (front left open) and once again wearing his black shorts and combat boots. The bright orange cowboy hat with its red beads and two opposing smiley medallions finished the look. The fiery also had tendrils of his flames still coiled about the other two. One twined about Sabo's left arm and reaching his shoulder, flickering as the teen moved about. Luffy had one twisting over the skinny arms looped around Ace's neck and another that wrapped itself around the middle of the kid's back. Ace didn't have any fire covering him like the night before but his glare warned what would happen if anyone tried to get close.

Pink once again dusted the two commanders' cheeks when they noticed the relaxed and blissful expression Luffy had. The kid was practically glowing with contentment. Ace and Sabo were shooting a smug, but very warm, look at their baby brother while wearing identical self-satisfied smirks.

' _I am really starting to question their definition of the word "brother"_ ,' Thatch thought.

Izou was also scrutinizing the three, taking the looks of adoration the older two were giving the small brat. He was very concerned about the relationship the three young pirates had. There was no way they were just friends or comrades; whatever they had was too intimate to be described with such words. But the picture he was putting together from what his family had been told sort of disturbed him; Izou hoped the boys weren't involved with one another in the manner he was thinking of. ' _Those sounds from a few minutes ago doesn't help either when paired with how we caught them sleeping_ ,' the geisha mused.

Sabo faced the older pirates, a neutral expression in place, and politely said, "We are ready now. I assume this vessel's galley is in the direction you gentlemen are standing?"

Izou and Thatch weren't fooled for a second. Though the politeness was appreciated over Ace's cursing and uncouth speech or the runt's growling, it was clearly meant to keep a distance between the speaker and commanders. Wariness and caution were clearly discernable in the young blond's eyes. The same for the other two pirates as well, only Luffy's held a touch of curiosity and angry distrust could be found in Ace's.

"Right, well, this way then," Thatch replied. Throwing the brothers a sunny smile in the hopes of easing the tension he felt from them, the cook turned and started for the galley.

Only Izou caught how the three teens stiffened at the sight of his brother's smile. Ace tossing a quick side-glance at his blond companion to which Sabo responded with a cool look of his own. The fire-user apparently took as a sign to follow the commanders. When Ace and Sabo paused in their steps, Izou realized that they were waiting for him go down the hall before them. The Sixteenth frowned slightly at the blatant distrust—' _Honestly, we haven't purposely hurt them yet or tried to attack them. You'd think the brats would realize we aren't planning to either._ '—but started after Thatch, his getas clacking away on the wood.

* * *

Luffy was really thankful and happy he had such awesome big brothers.

Thanks to not getting a chance to stretch his wings having to keep them folded tight, his back muscles had been really sore that morning. Ace had noticed him give a slight twinge when reaching (stretching) for his vest and poked his back. Feeling the normally pliant and springy muscles all tense and stiff, Ace sat him on the floor and began to massage his back.

Though painful at first, Luffy was soon little more than a noodley lump sprawled in front of his brother and letting out sounds of pure bliss. Unfortunately, the little dragon's floppy state made Ace's act of massaging the youngest brother's muscles a tad harder. Knowing Luffy needed to get some as soon as he could (Lu was thinner than what he usually was and Ace didn't like it), the older raven had called on Sabo for help. Having _both_ of his brothers so focused on him had made Luffy even happier, causing him to thrum while also verbally announcing his pleasure. Usually he would have also shared how happy he was feeling mentally but he didn't want to worsen Ace and Sabo's headache.

Now they were back together and whole again, Luffy _was_ starting to get a little hungry. This didn't dampen his mood because the Human who smelled like spices and smoke (similar to the way their ship cook smelt after prepping food) was leading them to food. Lu was also pleased that the funny-haired stranger was keeping three-ish paces away the entire time they were walking.

What _wasn't_ sitting well with him was stupid Lady-Man trying to get close. At first, the oddly-dressed pirate—assuming he even _was_ a pirate and not one of those 'extras' some Humans keep for "fun"—kept ahead of the white-clothed man leading them. But then the odd male began to drop back nearer to him and his brothers. It was really starting to grate on Luffy's nerves that the person wouldn't _back off_ and stop trying to get closer to them. They had to know this, too, because they kept looking at him every time they subtly came closer.

Luffy finally snapped when Lady-Man came within five feet of them and growled, " _Back off!_ "

Ace and Sabo had noticed their little brother's fraying temper so they were prepared for the sudden and loud outburst. Flames licked at the red and white clothed Human, both older brothers adding in their own low growls to show their displeasure.

* * *

Thatch jumped, startled at hearing the growled shout of "Back off!" coming from behind him. Twisting around to see what had happened—he thought he'd told everyone to stay away from this route to the galley but perhaps someone let their curiosity get the better of them—and found Izou quickly backing away from a low wall of flames trying to ignite his kimono. His feminine brother was equally rattled by loud voice that had burst from the tiny raven's mouth. The older brothers were glaring and growling at the cross-dressing commander too.

Knowing what had most likely occurred, the cook whirled to add his own reproving glare to the others directed at Izou and exclaimed, "What the hell, Izou? I _told_ you not to do anything that would upset them!" Seeing Izou's unhappy pout and preparing a response that would likely only serve to make the potential new recruits more uncomfortable, Thatch hurried on in a serious tone, "Either go ahead of us and we'll meet you in the mess hall or stay in front of me. Stop pestering them!"

Seeing the no-nonsense set to Thatch's face, Izou shut his mouth with a snap. The Sixteenth Commander gave Thatch a moody look, shot a quick analyzing glance at the three stiff and riled teens, then huffed and moved to stand a few feet a head of the cook. While moving away from the three brothers, Thatch heard Sabo and Ace's low growling fade and stop.

Crossing his arms, Izou let out a disgruntled huff and said, "Fine. I'll stay up here so let's go already. I'm hungry."

Just in case, Thatch looked back at the band of brothers to see if they were fine with this arrangement. Luffy had stopped glaring and loosened up, head back to resting comfortably on Ace's flaming shoulder…

He blinked. ' _Yep. Ace has flames on his shoulders and along his arms and the other two's flames are definitely very angry looking. Just how is this normal to them to be covered in_ fire _?'_

Luffy was still eyeing the two commanders, his gaze resting on Izou's form more often than Thatch, but didn't have the nasty look gracing Ace and Sabo's faces. Those two were trying their hand at glaring Izou to death. Hopefully the two protective brothers wouldn't succeed in that endeavor; the crossdresser could be annoying at times but he still loved his brother.

Thatch watched as Strawhat glanced at him before giving a small squeeze of his arms around Ace's neck. Ace relaxed—at least his shoulders did, everything else still seemed stiff coiled to attack—and looked at Thatch as he went to take a step forward. The cook gave the three boys a smile (this time catching the increased wariness in their eyes), turned, and gestured for Izou to get moving too.

The Fourth Commander was only too grateful that nothing else happened on the way to the galley. ' _Good. The guys actually listened and stayed away for once. If anybody else happened by they would've been sent to see Bay._ '

* * *

The size of the galley astounded the three brothers. It was absolutely huge! Large tables with benches were setup to maximize the amount of people that could be seated comfortably in the hall. To the left of the door was a huge table with a large chair placed next to it on a raised platform. The far wall had a sectioned off area that looked to be where the food was served in a buffet-like style. Luffy could smell what was possibly the kitchen beyond the divide.

While Luffy was taking in the scents of food (and getting distracted by the prospect of eating), Ace and Sabo were nervously glancing—to everyone else they looked to be glaring; Sabo with a cold neutrality and Ace with deep suspicion—around at the people present in the room. Few people were present in the expansive space, so at least their guides had been telling the truth about that. Most were either alone or paired up and quietly chatting as they finished eating their breakfast. The largest group consisted of an eclectic mix of four individuals seated at a table near the dais holding the oversized chair.

There was a large man in a dark V-neck top with white diamond-shaped design spread across the front and wearing a deep, navy-blue top hat with a mildly lighter blue ribbon along the base. He had curly black hair and an impressive, meticulously trimmed handlebar mustache. Sabo recognized him as the one who had manhandled him the night before with the feminine guy's help. Next to him was a large man wearing a hat that looked like a watermelon rind and wearing a frameless pair of purple glasses. A pair of headphones hung around the man's neck, drawing Ace and Sabo's eyes to the odd dark patch on the man's chin. Headphone-guy was wearing a light purple, deep V-necked vest under a dark green sleeveless trench coat and blue/gray/brown camo pants. Across from the two was a pair that contrasted sharply with each other, mostly because one was absolutely huge (even bigger than 'Mr. Sparkles') and the other was about Ace and Sabo's height (though they looked a midget sitting with the other three). The giant had dark hair fixed in a long braid that reached halfway down his back and a bushy gray beard. His outfit consisted of a dark vest (which he left open), a set of bangles on his upper arms under a dark purple shoulder tattoo, and light-colored pants. The auburn-haired midget was dressed up in some weird green shirt with puffy arms and splayed-ribbon edging along the bottom and a white puffy color. Cream-colored pants with similar fringing as the shirt's bottom and blue shoes completed the look.

Soon after the five entered the room, all easy chattering drifted to a stop once the other pirates realized _who_ had come walking in. The four by the dais also stopped whatever they'd been discussing (because Ace and Sabo didn't see any plates on their table so they weren't eating) to stare at the three brothers.

The two men leading them separated; the white-uniformed cook walking towards the serving area and dress-wearing guy over to the room's largest group. It was the latter that the older brothers focused on as they paused in following the big cook. Luffy's attention was caught by his brother's halted progress towards the delicious smelling food. Seeing the two scrutinizing something off to the side he shifted to see what was so interesting.

Luffy tensed upon recognizing the male that Lady-Man began talking to. He was the other one who had tried to take Sabo yesterday. The other Humans at the table were also those who had been part of the group to surround him and Sabo before Ace showed up. Seeing the bunch directing assessing looks at him and his brothers while listening to whatever Lady-Man was quietly talking to Mustache about had Lu tensing even more. Finally catching onto the sheer quiet of the room, which he knew had been filled a low buzz of chatter when they had first come in, Luffy turned to take in the rest of the space.

Ace felt his back vibrate from the subvocal growl coming from his baby brother. The arms looped around his neck tightened as Luffy's body stiffened, pressing closer to Ace's back. Sabo caught the movement and shifted closer to Ace's shoulder while placing his left hand comfortingly on the middle of Lu's back. Ace's flames clinging to the younger two grew warmer and coiled tighter.

None of the brothers appreciated being the center of these strangers' attention, like they were some sort of exotic creature to be studied. Or captured and sold off to the highest bidder.

"Alright you slackers," the brothers' eyes snapped to the speaker, finding the person in question to be the cook who had brought them here. They quickly found that the man was actually speaking to his fellow crewmates instead of them as he continued, "hurry up and finish your food! Unless there's something wrong with my cooking that you're not telling me…"

Luffy, Ace and Sabo watched as the rest of the galley's occupants paled a little before returning to what was left on their plates. After scarfing down the remainders of their breakfasts, the brothers moved off to the side (putting a table between them and the door) and carefully watched as the pirates made a quick escape. Only the five Whitebeard Pirates by the giant chair and the cook remained.

"Now then, let's get you kids something to eat." Scowling at being called a kid, Ace followed after the man. Sabo flicked his gaze over to the commanders—and they had to be with how strong their _ki_ was compared to the pirates who had exited—as he kept pace with Ace.

Sabo didn't bother with trying to keep tabs on the supposed commanders as the brothers ventured further into the mess hall. Ace tried but quickly gave up. Both of their heads pounded and the brighter lighting in the galley, as compared to their room and the halls coming here, was grating on their sensitive eyes. Honestly, it was like the two were hungover except that they didn't feel sick and there was no real way to fix how they felt. They could only wait until the pain resolved itself over time; hopefully it would only take a few hours. It shouldn't take longer than that as they were really only suffering because of how Luffy had overloaded their minds with his emotions the night before. Even though Sabo was deeply connected to Lu for days, the younger brother had been shielding most of his emotions from the blond. Sabo had connected to help Luffy keep control of his instincts and give him some mental support in trying to contact the oldest brother.

Though it rankled Sabo and Ace not being able to keep track of those in the room with them because of their damn headache/migraine, they took comfort knowing that Lu was taking care of that task. The dragon was still tired even with a night of sleep under him, but Luffy possessed enough energy to keep watch while his brothers recuperated. He would notify them of anything he found suspicious or needing their attention.

* * *

Sabo had asked Thatch to grab a pair of plates after giving what food was left over from the crew's breakfast scrutinizing look. Ace hung back as he also sent a wary glare at the food, while the monkey-boy on his back was practically drooling. Thinking he knew what was going through the older brothers' heads, and considering the story about Jozu vs Sabo over being presented water, Thatch was quick to tell them that the food was fine and completely safe to eat. Naturally, Ace was quick to declare his doubts about the other's intentions in feeding them.

What followed was an argument that closely mirrored Jozu's earlier predicament, only much shorter in length. Luffy was hungry and there was food right _there_ for him to eat. He understood his brother's reservations and Sabo's own quiet caution in being handed something for free by those who had essentially captured them. Really. But he was _hungry_ and wanted to eat something _now_. Pom-Pom Guy (Sabo had said the Human's funny hair was in a 'pom-doodle' or something style) kept repeating that he was "a chef" who's duty it was "to feed whoever was hungry" and how dare they "insult" him by saying he "poisoned it or some other ridiculous accusation".

"It's fine, Ace."

Thatch was surprised when a young voice interrupted his argument with the hothead; he'd forgotten Luffy was on the teen's back since the kid had been so quiet. He (along with the teens) looked at the dark-haired child whose gaze was fixed squarely on the cook. Sabo and Ace shared a look before listening to Luffy and going over to start piling the food on plates.

' _That's it?'_ Thatch thought. ' _Three words and they just drop everything like there wasn't ever an issue?'_ It almost gave the commander whiplash from how quickly the hostility in the fire-user abated. Shaking his head, Thatch moved over so that Sabo could pile food onto the two plates he was holding. When nothing more could possibly fit onto the group's dishes, he told the brothers to sit wherever they wanted. He wasn't overly surprised when the three moved to sit at the far wall (near the food still) and chose a table that placed their backs against the wall and afforded them a view of the entire room. Thatch was a little dismayed over how naturally the three chose that particular spot.

Following them over, Thatch stared at the amount of food on the table before him after setting the plates he carried down. How had they managed to grab _eight_ plates? How did he not notice the three boys all had plates in their hands?

Ace tilted his head to hide the grin on his face at seeing the supposed cook's baffled expression. Sabo also had a light amused smirk touching the edges of his lips. Luffy was more interested in getting off Ace's back so that he could attack the food his brothers were placing in his spot than what the commander's face was doing.

"Um, are you two sure that he can that much?" Thatch asked as he watched Ace and Sabo scoot four plates towards the middle of where they were sitting down. The older two took a pair of plates each for themselves, subtly moving them off to the side and away from the middle.

Ace rolled his eyes as he replied, "Luffy will have no problem finishing that small amount. He should get more."

"Ace, no. That's all Lu gets for now. He hasn't been eating well and I don't want him to get si—," Sabo paused as he finally remembered something _very_ important. "Wait, Lu! Don't eat that!" The blond quickly grabbed his younger brother's hand, halting the food's progress towards the mouth that was more like a black hole.

Ace's own food-laden utensil stopped its ascent to his face. He glanced questioningly over Luffy's head at Sabo, noting the look of alarm on his brother's face.

Thatch was sitting up straight and staring between the brother trio, wondering what had caused Sabo to keep Luffy from enjoying the food he'd worked hard to prepare. "I already told you, there's _nothing wrong with my cooking!_ Nothing's been poisoned or somehow messed with! It's just normal food!"

Sabo turned his head to face him, hand still preventing Luffy from trying to eat the large bite on his fork. Calmly, he said, "We've heard. However, I fear that there is a chance we could rather ill if we proceed to consume this food. That's not to say you are lying," Sabo went on, silencing the protest Thatch was about to blurt, "it's just that we are… _allergic_ …to certain things that some people add to their dishes without a thought." Ace's eyes widened hearing this.

He and Sabo were too preoccupied by their headaches and weakened states, with Luffy too hungry and worse off than them, and almost forgot that Lu _wasn't_ Human and reacted differently to certain edibles. Not that everybody _used_ those things Luffy was 'allergic' to in their cooking, but some were considered commonplace in dishes on certain islands/regions. Sabo and Ace never ate anything that didn't react well with their baby brother's body either. One, so it wasn't as suspicious. Two, because there was a chance they could be negatively affected as well.

Thatch stared at the three, taking in the dawning understanding in the other two brothers at Sabo's explanation. At least he now knew why the blond had suddenly demanded the youngest kid to not eat anything. Shifting in his seat, Thatch felt the folded paper Marco had handed him last night in his pants' pocket. Taking it out and opening it, he eyed the piece of paper before holding it out to the brothers.

"This wouldn't happen to be a list of things you can't eat, would it?" All three stilled and eyed him, and the paper in his hand, warily.

Sabo took the paper and looked over its contents. Ace leaned over Lu to get a glimpse of what was written, scowling as he recognized some of the items to be of the variety Sabo had described.

Casting a dark look at Thatch, he asked, "How did you get this?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Thatch put his hands up in a show of peace, trying to calm the storm he could see brewing on the other side of the table. "I swear I had _no idea_ what that list was! …Well, maybe an idea or two…but nothing I was sure about!"

Luffy surreptitiously put a hand on Ace's knee under the table. Feeling the touch and knowing what was being asked of him, Ace quieted and waited for the man to explain. Sabo joined in on glaring at the cook with the fire-user, suspicion clear in his blue eyes.

"You see…Marco went over to your guys' ship to ask a few things last night and let them know you'd be staying here to rest. One of them, umm…Zack! Zack gave him that paper, to give to me, to show to you... Or something like that." Seeing as how none of them were growling or trying to attack him physically yet (Ace seemed to be trying to impale Thatch with his glare, though) the cook went on, "I didn't know what the list was but I did recognize some of those items as herbs or berries that I've known other chefs to use in their kitchen. I decided to play it safe and make sure that none of what we served today for breakfast included those. Though, honestly, we only have a couple of the herbs listed on there and nothing else."

Sensing Pom-Pom wasn't lying or trying to deceive them and was being completely honest with the brothers, Luffy gave a light tap to Sabo's leg. Sabo glanced at the younger then over at Ace, giving the freckled raven-hair a slight nod to Lu. Ace swiveled his steely gaze to the dragon before letting out a huff and resituating himself before his food. Giving Lu a pat on the head and telling him that it was okay to start eating, Sabo folded the paper and placed it in an inside pock of his coat.

Thatch was glad that the three decided to trust him and finally eat something. He was quickly staring in open-mouthed shock at how quickly the brothers ate (Luffy finishing his four plates at the same time Sabo and Ace finished their two), laughing as Luffy's stomach growled for more.

"Alright, let's get you guys another set of plates. There's plenty more where that came from so don't be shy about it!" Sabo turned to examine Lu, noting how thin he'd gotten from not eating and sleeping properly for so long.

"Excuse me, Commander, sir." Thatch paused in getting up from the table, looking across at the blond speaking to him. "I believe Luffy shouldn't get more than seven or eight more plates like that." Ace raised an eyebrow at that while Luffy gave a small squawk of displeasure.

"Why can't I have more?" Sabo rubbed the hat the straw hat sitting on his brother's head, pressing it down into the black locks.

"Lu, if you eat too much at once right now you will get sick." Seeing him pout, Sabo quickly tacked on, "Don't worry, you can get more later." Luffy immediately brightened upon hearing this.

With the crisis averted, Ace got up to help Thatch grab some more food which left Sabo and Luffy sitting at the table by the wall. Sabo kept his eyes on Ace. He knew it was ridiculous, thinking that Ace might disappear if they took their eyes off him, but he couldn't help it.

' _I'm almost as bad as Lu_ ,' he thought.

Luffy placed his hands on the bench to either side of him, kicking his feet as he waited for Ace and Pom-Pom Guy to come back with more food. He took this opportunity to get a better look at what the other group were doing by the door. They'd been whispering the entire time, though he only caught snippets of what they were saying, and he had felt their assessing looks drifting over him and his brothers several times.

They'd all sat back down at their table near the huge chair, with the midget in in the funny, puffy shirt facing towards the brothers' chosen table. Everyone else was focused on whatever they happened to be talking about and no longer really looking at the brothers. Luffy liked that. Being stared at made him uncomfortable if it was strangers doing the staring. He caught Puffy Midget (or would Green Puff be better?) occasionally looking over at him and Sabo or Ace and Pom-Pom Guy.

Luffy stilled as he got a fun idea. Early this morning, he'd learned from Sabo that these pirates thought he'd eaten a Devil Fruit but didn't know what kind. He wouldn't necessarily reveal his ability; they were on enemy territory and they'd heard about those who were sold off to other Humans due to possessing unusual abilities or powers. Lu never _ever_ wanted to experience. So, he would have fun while not truly giving anything away!

Making sure that none of the other pirates in the room were paying attention, Luffy quickly spun his head around three times. Keeping his neck twisted, he looked over at the other groups' table and waited for Green Puff to look back over at him. Thankfully for Lu, it only took a minute for the pirate to do so.

Stretching his arms out in front of him (twisting them like noodles but not actually stretching them out) while smiling at the puffy-sleeved Human, Luffy watched as the midget's eyes stared at him for a couple before snapping wide in shock. The green-shirted Human had been resting his chin in his palm, elbow planted on the table. When his eyes shot open he'd stopped paying attention to holding his head up and caused his head to 'thunk' against the table. Lu could easily hear it across the room.

Quickly undoing the twists, Lu watched as the surrounding people asked the smaller person if they were alright and what had they been looking at. Seeing them twisting to look over at him, Luffy started playing with Sabo's jacket. He smiled at hearing a voice exclaim "It's true!" and several whispers of disbelief succeed the shout.

Sabo glanced over at the commanders, taking in the one dressed in the green shirt pointing at them and saying something. He shot an amused eye at Luffy before redirecting his gaze back to Ace and Thatch. "Was that really necessary?"

Grinning into Sabo's sleeve, Luffy tipped his face upwards to peek at Sabo from under his hat. Flicking a blue eye down at his arm and seeing the delight in his brother's dark eyes had Sabo giving a small grin in return. "Just don't get caught, 'kay?"

Rubbing his head against Sabo's arm, Luffy let out a quiet trill of agreement.

"What's he so happy about?" Ace asked as he set more plates down in front of his two brothers.

Thatch was confused by Ace's question until he saw the little kid, hat hiding his eyes, rubbing his head against the blond's arm. It looked like he trying to snuggle into the older teen's side. The Fourth then noticed the sunny grin on the kid's face once his head stopped moving.

"Luffy wanted to know if he could play a game. I said 'yes'." Ace took in the smile (that looked closer to a smirk without actually being one) on Sabo's face then looked down at Luffy when the smaller raven-head turned to peek up at him. The fire-user felt a grin of his own forming.

The cook couldn't see the youngest of the trio's face very well at this angle, but he _did_ catch a glimpse of the kid's eyes. What he saw gave him very mixed feelings.

One the one hand, he now knew the kid—Luffy—seemed to have a very playful side to him. That particular look was one Thatch and Haruta would get a particularly great idea (read prank) that they wanted to share with the rest of the family. On the other hand….that was the same look he had whenever his ideas inevitably lead to him being chased about the ship by his siblings as they screamed threats of revenge.

Pro: one of his hopeful 'soon-to-be-brothers' would make a great fellow prankster once the three brothers joined their large family.

Con: until the three brothers joined their family it was very likely Luffy would be seeking his entertainment at everyone else's expense.

"What's got them going?" Ace asked as he shot a puzzled look over at Izou's group.

Thatch felt a small shiver of trepidation work its way down his spine seeing Sabo and Luffy's grins widen at their brother's question. ' _The sooner they join us the better…_ '

Ace glanced between Izou's table and Sabo and Luffy. ' _Oh… Ooooh… This is gonna be good!'_

The sudden knowing smirk on Ace's face _did not_ make Thatch feel any better about what the three had planned.

* * *

Marco, hiding around the corner down the hall from the mess' entrance, waited until the five pirates entered and closed the door. Now that he knew the brothers weren't in the room he immediately made his way there.

Pops wanted to talk to the brats after they'd eaten and cleaned up but Marco was feeling apprehensive about the possible outcomes of the encounter. Ace had demonstrated an unusual amount of hatred towards the older captain, tone different than the other times people claimed they were going to take Whitebeard's head. Like any good first mate of a pirate crew, Marco had voiced his concerns over Pops' decision to recruit Ace even after the kid had attacked with such fury. Of course Whitebeard didn't change his mind, Marco had a feeling he wouldn't. The phoenix had seen the way his father looked down at the bleeding and unconscious Spade Captain. Pops had looked at many of his children that way when he felt they were hurting but didn't know why. Marco quickly gave up voicing his disagreement with the decision at seeing that look when Pops visited Ace in the infirmary the night they had captured Ace.

The only time he had stated his disagreement with his father's decision was yesterday. He'd already suspected Pops would want the other two after seeing what they did to get back Ace, so there wasn't much surprise when the giant man changed his plans.

Except, Marco now had new worries plaguing him. All three brothers made their dislike (bordering hatred for Ace) of the Whitebeards very clear. He didn't think Sabo and Luffy personally held a grudge against them when they first encountered the trio; Ace was the one with hatred rolling off him while the other two remained cautious back on the island. After kidnapping their brother and then holding them captive, it would only be natural for Sabo and Luffy to also harbor hatred towards the Whitebeard now.

' _And Pops still wants to have the three bear his mark, yoi._ ' Marco expects that Ace will act like the firecracker he is and try to pull something. He just worried that the young captain will be backed up by two headache-inducing brothers now. ' _That's all we need._ Three _terrors trying to off Pops staying onboard._ '

Which is why he was visiting the room they had slept in. His family didn't know much of anything about the three brothers and he found it odd that their gathered information about the Spade Pirates was so far off the mark. Whitebeard had a very good intelligence network. That the three were able to hide so much from his family made the First Commander uneasy and suspicious.

Ace was a hotheaded fire-user, he was confident that he would be able to deal with that power if the ex-captain did anything too outrageous. Sabo seemed to be the calculating one of the group based on Marco's limited experience with the three. Also resourceful if those improvised smoke bombs and ability to remain hidden while _an entire ship_ searched for the newest captives were to indelicate anything. That teen would be trouble if he were to pair with the other two against them. Luffy…

' _I don't know what to think about that kid, yoi._ ' The brat made his Phoenix nervous. It was a mythological bird of _fire_ that was practically _immortal_ and one little kid made the mighty creature _nervous_! That alone set alarms ringing in his head. He'd spoken to his father privately about the subject and received permission to keep a close eye on the youngest brother.

The shrimp was stronger than he should be for one his size. He acted like a wild animal when threatened. Was able to suppress his presence to the point nobody could find him. Ran circles around a group of Whitebeard Commanders and several dozen division members. To top it all off, it was very likely the kid was a Zoan with a large and deadly animal-base.

Marco sighed as he came to the three's borrowed room. Opening the door, he thought, ' _Namur's right. Luffy could prove to be very dangerous yoi._ '

Entering the room, Marco took in the bare bed shoved to the side of the door and the giant, haphazard collection of pillows and blankets by the wall directly opposite him. The scent in the room was reminiscent of the one the three boys stayed in on their old ship, only faded a little. Seeing the spread of bedding as poor imitation of the nest that had occupied the trio's old room, the phoenix moved to examine it for any clues.

He could smell the individual scents of the three brothers, but the one he was most interested in the ghost of a fourth. It had been faded in the other nest, as if it hadn't been used in a couple days, and was overpowered by the brothers' unique scents. Here he had noticed it almost immediately. Marco first thought that it was Luffy's but closer inspection of the nest showed him the fourth, though very similar, was different than the wild shrimp's. As a bird, his sense of smell might not be as good as a cat or dog's but he could still distinguish a difference in the two scents.

He frowned at this discovery. Two scents meant two different people no matter how similar they may be. Even Zoans changed their scent to match closer to their base and smelled the same regardless of form. So how were there four scents and only three brothers?

Wanting to get a better idea of the odd scent, Marco decided to transform and try again. Giving himself a couple seconds to reorient himself, Marco was pleased to find the scents came across much clearer in this form. Bending his gold-plumed head closer to the nest he squawked in surprise and shock when the unknown scent registered with his avian-self. Marco was so startled by his reaction that he unconsciously changed back, falling to the ground and landing on his butt with his hands braced behind him. It took a few moments for him to calm down enough to think over what had just happened.

' _The hell… What in blazing hell was_ that _about!?'_ Marco dimly noticed that in his surprise he'd lost his fiery form, too focused on the way the scent had affected him. ' _No, not me yoi. I still don't recognize that scent. It…_ ' He paused, brain finally catching up to him. He hadn't recognized the scent. _He_ hadn't. The _Phoenix_ did. It wasn't the unknown scent Marco had been reacting to (not completely at least), but the way the Phoenix in him reacted. ' _Instinct. The Phoenix knows what that scent is through instinct yoi._ '

The bird had felt a sense of trepidation. It was wary and cautious of the creature that scent belonged to, but didn't outright fear it. The Phoenix had been shocked at the appearance of the scent and seemed to somehow possess a feeling of nostalgia towards it as well. What had thrown Marco for a loop was strength of his Phoenix's reactions, not his own. ' _Pops needs to hear this, yoi. Before he meets with those three._ '

Marco moved to stand up, hand sliding against the wooden floor until hitting a groove. At first he thought it was from his own talons but looking down at where his hand was showed that wasn't the case. The groove was too big and deep. Something larger and heavier than the Phoenix had made it. Getting up and checking the nest area revealed a few more to his eyes. They matched the ones he'd seen back in the boys' room almost perfectly, looking to only be slightly smaller in size.

Shaking his head and taking a deep breath, Marco exited the room and started for the Captain's Cabin.

* * *

"Are you sure you guys don't want to wash up? We have really nice bathrooms you could use. The closest—and nicest in my opinion—is the one for us Commanders. Each has a large bath and set of showers, but ours has the largest bath I think."

"No thank you. We'd rather get this meeting done with sooner instead of later."

"Ne, _why_ are we going to see the White Bead's Captain?"

"'Cause Captain Bastard wants to talk to the ones he's holding captive on this damn boat."

Thatch honestly couldn't argue much with that statement, though he did say, "It's 'Whitebeard' not 'White Bead'. And Pops isn't a bastard either, you know."

Ace glared at the back of the cook's head as he said, "Could have fooled us."

Luffy was busy looking around from his perch on Ace's back as they made their way to the deck. While curious about the ship, he was also keeping an eye out for any possible ambush or attack on him and his brothers.

The five strong Humans had left the galley a little before the brothers finished eating (Sabo had been right and Luffy had felt full after only a few plates). Thatch had then offered them the chance to clean up before stating that the ship's Captain wanted to meet with them. That statement made the brothers nervous though they managed to hide it from the Fourth Division Commander. Wanting to get the meeting over with so they could get back to their own ship and crew, the three declined Thatch's offer to show them to the bathroom. None of them were _that_ dirty anyhow; at least, not more than usual after getting into a small scuffle. They've certainly come out of a fight looking way worse and often get dirtier exploring random islands.

Luffy tensed when they came out on deck, prompting Ace to give a light squeeze to the rubber legs pinned to his side. Sabo gripped Lu's vest a little tighter.

There were lots of pirates roaming about and doing various tasks. Many looked at the four who came up from below when they caught a glimpse of Thatch emerging from the doorway. More paused in their work upon realizing who the three others with the commander were.

Seeing that his siblings were going to try and come closer to them, probably to greet or inspect the boys Pops wanted to adopt, Thatch quickly motioned from them to stay back. He'd caught how all three had become wary and threw up their guard at spotting the sheer number of pirates walking about. Being swarmed by a group of strangers would end very badly (for the Whitebeards) at the moment. Thatch had also seen how Ace and Sabo squinted their eyes against the sunlight. When they entered the galley from the lower lit corridor the same thing had occurred. They weren't obvious about it and had hidden how the brightness affected them. Too well in his opinion.

' _Probably have a headache or something. Should tell Marco and see if he can get Bay to check them._ '

Luffy relaxed his muscles when the enemy pirates moved back and continued with whatever they had been doing. He was still prepped to act at the slightest sign of trouble but didn't want to give that away by remaining visibly prepared.

Ace grew his flames from thin wisps wrapped about his brothers into thicker ropes. If he sensed any possible attacker his flames would protect his brothers. Sabo and Luffy also enjoyed the feeling of their brother's fire; the feel of it coiled around their arms (and Lu's torso) calming and reassuring.

Thatch glanced at the flames but didn't comment. Instead, he beckoned the brothers forward and led them to where his father would be sitting. Ace, Sabo, and Luffy noticed the giant amphitheater-like build the main deck had, the back edge coming within several yards of the mainmast by the ship's helm.

The younger two just looked at the giant space while thinking, ' _How did I miss that?'_ Granted, they weren't in peak condition at the time but still… They had been _tied to the freaking mast_ and sitting only _a few odd yards away_. One would think Luffy and Sabo would have _seen_ it. Especially as Luffy had been running about like crazy the morning before.

Ace was the first to spot the giant chair with its large Captain placed at the back of the amphitheater space. The movements of the other fourteen commanders standing or sitting on the large steps near the chair caught Luffy eyes, glancing at each of them and examining what he found. Not that any could tell. The dragon's dark eyes were sporting a deceptively blank look while scouting out the rival pirates. Sabo's attention, like Ace's, was focused on the giant man sitting between his commanding officers. Shifting his dark orbs onto the captain as well, Luffy eyed the large Human.

An oxygen tube ran from a tank placed behind the giant chair up to the veteran captain's nose. The chair itself was set back into the steps. The wooden frame painted dark purple with dark red cushions on its backrest and seat. Whitebeard was dressed in loose cream pants tied with a black sash, black boots that went halfway to his knees, and a black bandana covering his head. A high-collared white captain's coat with gold buttons, trim and shoulder pads with red-lining inside finished the look as it draped over his shoulders.

The boys stopped following Thatch when the group came within ten feet of the captain and his commanders. Thatch walked over to stand by Vista and Izou to Pops' right, sitting down by the larger swordsman. Marco was standing, arms crossed and looking bored with the world, off to the side at their Captain's right.

Knowing they presented an intimidating front when all together like this, the Captain and his Commanders carefully watched the boys before them. Namur's questioning of the threat-level the youngest presented and the odd, menacing presence they had felt when their captain had confronted the trio had most of the commanders extremely on edge. Plus, hearing what a hothead Ace was and how much of a headache the other two were additional incentives to keeping an eye on the three.

Whitebeard was more relaxed about this meeting than his sons by a long shot. Scrutinizing the three brats standing in front of him, he again questioned the nature of their relationship. He'd heard Izou talking to some if his brothers about how he and Thatch had found the trio this morning. Looking at the boys Newgate didn't doubt their closeness and obvious trust in each other. He didn't think that they were in the type of relationship Izou was implying, but it was still a horrible mistake on his part to try and separate the three.

Sabo stepped even with Ace, removing his gaze from the giant captain to those stationed around him. Ace did the same, knowing that Luffy would turn his focus to the huge man when Sabo and he weren't keeping watch. The oldest brother, in contrast to Sabo's cool and neutral poker-face, glared at those assembled. These were the bastards who had kidnapped him and then tried to keep his brothers away.

Luffy squeezed his arms around Ace's neck, letting the older know he wanted down. Ace hesitated but another insistent squeeze had him complying. Moving to stand between the older two, Luffy glanced around at the strong Humans and their obvious display of power with some indifference before turning his attention back to the Captain. Sensing the tension growing thicker as the seconds passed, Lu decided to get things started his own way.

"Ne, Mr. Giant-Guy," the commanders and captain looked down at the small, straw hatted raven wearing a puzzled face, "why do you have a banana stuck to your face and why is white? Can I eat it!?" The older brothers face-palmed at the youngest's question. This was _not_ going to help their headaches go away any time soon.

' _Really, Lu? You are going to start the game like_ that _and right_ now _? Why~!'_

' _Sabo, what the hell were you thinking? Of course Luffy was going to do something like this once you gave him permission!'_

The commanders were stunned at the smallest brat's audacity. Did he seriously not know who he was talking to? Was he that stupid or just that uncaring? Thatch and Haruta, shocked as they were by the question, were just as equally amused by it and trying to hide the desire to laugh.

Whitebeard himself was simply amused at the tiny brat's cheekiness, though he did question the child's intelligence. His amusement only increased when the two older teens, simultaneously, slid their hands down their faces before punching the smallest brat on the top of his head.

"Ow! That hurt! Meanies!" Crouched down, Luffy rubbed his smarting head. His stupid brothers used a bit of _kiví_ in those hits.

Sabo sighed and shook his head while Ace exclaimed, "Don't ask stupid questions, idiot!"

Luffy removed one hand from his head and used it to point at the giant Human, shouting, "But I'm hungry and it _does_ look like a banana!"

"It's a 'mustache', not a banana, Lu." Sabo lightly smacked the younger's raised hand and said, "It's rude to point." Luffy pouted up at his older brothers, plopping his behind onto the deck and opting to just there for now.

Thatch stopped his rising chuckles upon hearing the youngest brother's desire to eat more. In shock, he asked, "How are still hungry? You probably ate more than Vista here already. There no way you can still be _hungry_!" Several of the commanders shot the cook and brothers incredulous looks at this.

The brothers' response was to give the Fourth Commander a look that loudly stated 'you are an idiot'. Whitebeard grinned in amusement at the young brats' antics.

Jozu stared at the tiny imp and the two older teens trying to think of how such tiny body could possibly fit that much food into it. Turning to Thatch he asked, "You sure it was him and not the other two clearing the plates?" Thatch just dumbly nodded, stupefied at the fact the kid could eat _that damn much_ and still be hungry.

"Ah!" Everyone turned to see the shrimp pointing at Jozu. "I know you! You're Mr. Sparkles! Ne, wanna play another game? I'll win this time!" Another stunned silence followed the beaming child's words.

Jozu was instantly red-faced, part embarrassed and part angry, as he shouted, "It's not 'Mr. Sparkles'!"

Haruta, Thatch, Vista, Izou, and Rakuyo were trying to hide their sniggers behind their hands. Pops was doing the best he could to not let on how amused he was that the littlest brat had managed to make the stoic-faced and almost constantly scowling Jozu come undone with only a couple sentences. Everyone else was just shocked at their brother's outburst.

"Oh? So you do prefer 'Glitter'," Sabo said with a mischievous smirk. Ace was lost on what was going on but still found his brothers' taunts to be hilarious. Luffy was delighted at the way things were going and having lots of fun making his brothers laugh at the mean Humans who had tried to split them up.

"Dammit! My name's _Jozu_! Jo-zu!" Now most of the commanders were trying to hold back their laughs at seeing how worked up their large brother was getting.

Luffy put a hand up to his chin in a thinking pose before trying out, " _Gúżo_?"

Ace and Sabo immediately busted up laughing, knowing _exactly_ what the younger sibling was really calling the man. Whitebeard noticed the gleam of knowledge in the older brats' faces at hearing the word and made sure to remember what the cheeky little brat said.

"NO!" Most of the commanders were openly laughing at their brother's frustration.

Luffy's face lit up with a bright smile as he smacked a fist onto an open palm and proudly shouted, "I get it! It's a Mystery Name!" Jozu's response, to the added amusement of his family, was to growl and scrub his face with his hands in irritation.

"Okay, kid, lay off—pfft!—Mr. Sparkles now, I think he's had enough," Thatch chuckled. Luffy frowned at the cook.

"But Pom-Pom, he cheated when we were playing a game earlier!" Thatch stopped chuckling when he heard the odd name.

Frowning back at the child and with obvious confusion in voice, the Fourth Commander asked, " _Pom-pom_? The hell is a _pom-pom_?"

"You," Luffy stated in utmost seriousness, his expression telling the older pirates that this should have been beyond obvious. Thatch's confusion turned to shock and mild embarrassment when he heard the others snickering at him instead of Jozu now.

"What do you mean 'me'? My name is Thatch! How'd you get… _Pom-Pom_ from that?"

"You have really funny hair! It's so weird and _poofy_! But Ace said you might not like being called 'Poofer' or 'Poofy' and Sabo said that your hair was a 'pom-thing' and that just sounded better anyway so I chose 'Pom-Pom', Pom-Pom!" Thatch ignored the happy smile rivaling the sun's rays and excited speech.

He was more focused on the insults (in his mind) being thrown around about his hair. The cook was also ignoring the loud bursts of laughter coming from everyone. Ace and Sabo had started laughing part-way into Luffy's rambling when they caught sight of the chef's darkening glower. Marco was chuckling and shooting amused glances at the very unamused brunet. Even Whitebeard was laughing aloud with his children.

' _Cheeky brat's got them wrapped around his fingers_ ,' the captain thought. As humorous as the situation was, it led Whitebeard to a new observation about the tiny child. ' _He is playing with us and completely manipulating this encounter._ ' It was surprising and equally unnerving that the child had this sort of ability. Normally his sons were more composed than this and able to stay on track with a given task; in this case the meeting about apologizing and asking/welcoming the three brats into the family.

By this time Ace's flames had largely retreated back to him due to sensing no obvious threat being presented towards its master. A small glow still wrapped about the younger brothers but it was hard to see the dim strands in the sunlight.

Luffy smiled at seeing everyone so distracted. Taking this opportunity for what it was worth, he slipped away from his brothers' side. Nobody caught the dragon's movement.

Eyebrow and extremely faux smile twitching, Thatch turned to Vista and calmly grit out, "Visty, mind if I take a look at one of your swords for a second?"

"Aah…I think I would in this case," he replied, scooting away from the dark aura oozing out of his brother.

"Gurararara!" Everyone knew not to poke fun at his son's hair. The man was very defensive of it and had killed marines for knicking it with their gunfire or swords.

"Ne, Giant-Banana-Mustache-Man, can you poop?" Whitebeard's laugh cut off at the unexpected question coming from the left near his hand.

Hiding his surprise, he looked down at the small brat wearing a straw hat and sitting cross-legged on the arm of his chair. He cocked an eyebrow at the child's sudden appearance and question. _'When did the brat get there?'_

"Ah! Luffy," Ace stopped chuckling at Sabo's worried voice and turned to glance at the blond. Seeing his brother looking over at where Whitebeard was seated he turned to look too while Sabo continued saying, "get back here!"

Everyone else by this time also noticed the child now sitting on their father's chair, falling abruptly silent in their shock. Unconsciously, they all asked the same question as the Captain did. Sixteen people—eighteen counting the brat's friends—had missed the shrimp crossing an open space of ten feet and then climbing up the giant chair. How had that happened?

Even Marco was mystified. He'd been standing next to Pops' knee the entire time and hadn't realized the kid moved. Judging from the look on Pops' face neither did he. ' _Is it an ability of his Fruit, yoi? But someone_ must have _seen the kid getting up or at least moving at some point, right?'_ Clearly, the answer was 'no'. A look at the brat's brothers showed they hadn't noticed the brat leaving their side either. Then the question the straw hatted kid asked broke through to the first mate's brain.

"Oi—"

"My name is Edward Newgate, also known as 'Whitebeard'," the Captain said, cutting off his son. Catching the fearful looks the brat's brothers were sending the child, he decided to humor the boy's question with the hope that it would ease the others' worry. With a serious face and tone he quickly tacked on, "And yes, I poop."

While everyone sweatdropped at the fact that the captain actually answered the kid's stupid question—seriously, _who_ asks something like that? And to _Whitebeard_ of all people!—Marco shouted, "Don't answer that! And Luffy get down from there, yoi!"

Making sure to keep the giant Human in sight, Luffy twisted to get a look at who was speaking. Catching sight of Marco staring up at him, Lu was reminded that this Human had taken Ace away when he and Sabo were so close to rescuing him that first time. Seeing that Mr. Banana-Mustache hadn't moved and was just watching him (not sensing any hostile intent coming from the Human either), Luffy pointed at Mr. Pineapple-Head then looked over at his brothers with a smile on his face.

Seeing that face and remembering who the man was and his actions during their stay on the ship, Ace and Sabo paled a little. Luffy was going to do something that could end up with them getting thrown in the brig if they weren't careful.

Grinning brightly, with an edge of seriousness underlying the excitement in his voice, Luffy asked, "Sabo. Ace. I'm hungry. Can I eat him?" Both older siblings just stared at the little dragon.

Quietly, so only Ace would hear him, Sabo said, "Well, it could have been worse." Ace shot a mild glare at the blond.

"How? That guy's a Division Commander. _How_ could Lu do worse than threatening to eat the bastard?"

Sabo shrugged as he replied, "Dunno. It's Lu." Ace opened his mouth to say something but almost immediately closed it again as a thought struck him.

' _Sabo has point. Lu is a walking trouble-magnet and ball of chaos._ ' The fiery teen just sighed and resignedly nodded his head in recognition of the truth in Sabo's brief statement.

Meanwhile, all the commanders, Captain, and the pirates within hearing distance of the "meeting" tensed at hearing the youngest brother's question. Pretending to be oblivious to the change in atmosphere Lu continued with his 'fun'; though he began paying more attention to those nearest him, specifically the Human Captain sitting behind him.

"Um, Luffy? I don't think that would be a good idea," Sabo said with a calm and steady voice. It was at complete odds with the fear and uncertainty lurking in his eyes. How would the gathered Whitebeard Pirates take their little brother's query? Not very well, judging by the harsh eyes aimed at the straw hatted child.

Ace was glaring at everyone, daring the ones who had grabbed for their weapons to try and draw them. His fire reattached itself to both of his younger brothers due to its master's distress; looping about one arm, crossing over their shoulders, then coiling around the opposite arm. The fire's appearance had the commanders even more on edge as they glanced warily between Luffy, Marco, and their Pops and over at Sabo and Ace.

Whitebeard kept his eyes on the child still pointing at his eldest son and pouting at his brothers now. Despite the brat's bold words, the man didn't sense a desire to actually attack his First Commander. There was a glint of mischief in the eye partially focused on the giant captain. He'd earlier noticed how the cheeky little brat carefully monitored his movements, looking ready to flee if he saw reason to. When he first met the dark eyes, the old man was surprised to find curiosity and a touch of wariness. Normally others would have fear when meeting him face to face, like the elder two brothers. But that emotion wasn't present in the slightest.

Marco narrowed his eyes at the brat's question, worried about how serious he truly was. Still pointing at him (and that was getting very annoying) the straw hat kid whined, "But why _not_?"

Ace tried answering, "Luffy—"

"Mango!"

Everyone started at the random word. Or fruit in this case. Newgate raised an eyebrow in confusion at the odd word choice. Marco just stared at the kid, a sinking feeling growing in his stomach that puzzled him. Thatch and Haruta exchanged looks of bemusement, wondering if this was going where they thought it was and how great that would be if it were true.

"What?" both of Luffy's brothers asked, baffled at the younger's shout. One was hoping the smaller raven wasn't about to do what they think he's planning, the other very much interested in hearing what's about to be said.

Shaking his arm a couple times while pointing at the stupid Fire-Chicken, Luffy whined, "He's a _pineapple_ named _Mango_ that turns into a giant blue _chicken_! How is he _not food_?" Unfortunately for Marco, _everyone_ in the area heard the brat's loud and whiny statement.

"Gurararara!" The Captain slapped his knee as he belted out his unique laugh. Marco was scowling at all of his laughing brothers, especially Thatch and Haruta. Those two were laughing so damn hard they fell off their claimed spots on the steps and were now rolling on their backs while clutching their stomachs. The rest of the crew who had heard the exchange wasn't much better off.

' _I'll schedule extra chores and watch times for the next month, yoi._ ' Tick mark throbbing at his temple, the blond commander looked up at the arm rest and shouting, "It's _Marc_ —yoi?"

Hearing the confusion in the broken-off shout, a few commanders (who weren't laughing too hard to hear Marco) turned to look at the armrest. It was empty. Whitebeard had already turned his gaze elsewhere, silently scolding himself for accidentally frightening the little brat. Luffy had bolted from his spot on the chair over to his brothers the second he sensed the giant's movement.

"But Sabooo~ Why not? He's a _fruit_ that turns into a _chicken_!"

"Can't argue with that logic," Ace shrugged, smirking at Sabo's slightly exasperated expression. The boy still held a passive face but the older and youngest brothers knew from the slight tilt of the middle's eyebrows. Ace's fire wrapped more tightly around Luffy, trying to calm the smallest's racing heart. "And Luffy, the guy is too _big_ to be a chicken. Probably is a giant duck or goose."

The commanders, all quieting at the realization that their father and some brothers were no longer laughing, turned towards where the straw hat brat's voice now came from. Luffy was wedged between his brothers again, a hand clenching each of their shirts as he spoke to them. Thatch and Izou snorted at what they were saying about the First Division Commander, loving the way Marco was reacting to the three younger pirates.

"Ace stop encouraging him!" Glancing at the two mischievously glinting pairs of eyes, and accepting that his headache wasn't going to go away any faster thanks to this "meeting" (which Luffy had easily hijacked in typical Luffy-fashion), he sighed and said, "Besides, the commander is too big to be a chicken, goose or duck. He is likely a species of giant turkey that has a genetic anomaly which causes him to grow blue and yellow feathers."

Luffy tilted his head in confusion. Without a greater mental connection to his brothers it was harder for him to understand what they were saying or feeling sometimes. He could smell their nervousness and slight fear. But the way he was keeping their mental bond mostly closed meant that he could only dimly sense their emotions and had no clue what Sabo was saying. Luffy didn't like being so distant; however, keeping the bond very light would help his brothers get over their headaches (which he still felt guilty about) faster.

Ace was also a little lost on what Sabo had said. "I think he said that Pineapple-Head is a weird turkey." Whitebeard grinned at how Marco was starting to shake with indignance. It usually took a lot to get the normally stoic and bored-faced commander this riled and that the tiny brat was having an easy time of it was a little entertaining to him.

Thatch had a feeling this entire conversation was somehow related that "game" Luffy had gotten permission to play. ' _Actually, wasn't Pops s'pposed to talk to them about joining after apologizing?'_

Luffy grinned up at Sabo after Ace's explanation, proudly saying, "See! Even you think he's food! Why can't we eat him?" Ace shot an askance you-so-walked-into-that-one look at Sabo when the blond raised resigned eyes to meet his.

Vista and Namur (standing to the left of Pops and near Blamenco) examined the three young pirates. The former with intrigue, the latter wary caution. Both had noticed how the three only _seemed_ relaxed and not paying much attention to the surrounding pirates. The way they stood allowed them to keep an eye on all commanders and their captain at all times; bodies loose but poised to defend or attack at the first hint of danger. Namur was a little more focused on the odd scent coming off the smaller raven. It wasn't very human. Marco's was more human-like and the man could turn into a large bird of fire. All Zoans still retained a very human scent that was mixed with whatever their base-animal's was.

Namur frowned and glanced down ad over at Marco. ' _I need to see what he thinks._ '

Sabo frowned down at Luffy. ' _Is he really so upset with the guy that he truly wants to eat him? Lu_ was _very upset over him taking Ace but he also said the guy was "Good"._ ' Shooting an annoyed look at Ace (wanting to punch the idiot for egging Lu on), he answered, "One, Mr. Pineapple-Turkey fits at least _two_ of those rules Ace and I gave you about food. Two, I believe Ace would be uncomfortable with cooking him—"

Ace grimaced slightly at the thought of roasting a Human-shaped turkey for food while Luffy cut in with, "Mango is on fire when he turns into a blue turkey, so doesn't that mean he cooks himself? Ace won't have to then!" Said brother paused to think it over.

Nodding his head, the fire-user shot a grin at his very unamused and glowering (which only they could discern in the other's face) blond, "Point to Lu again, Sabo!" Ace's stomach growled. "Dammit, now you got me hungry too," Ace quietly scolded his grinning baby brother.

" _Three_ , I said 'no'! We don't need _you two_ to stir up even more trouble," Sabo ground out, full-on glaring at his brothers so they knew he was being serious.

"Che. Fine," the ravens mumbled, pouting at being thwarted to gain vengeance on the turkey-Human.

Luffy turned a pouty glower onto the visibly irritated First Commander, "Stupid pineapple-turkey."

Ace also faced the phoenix, a haughty smirk on his face. "It's okay, Luffy. I'm sure _Mango_ doesn't taste that good anyway." Sabo rolled his eyes but didn't try to hide his own amusement from those present.

"IT'S 'MARCO', DAMMIT! AND I'M A _PHOENIX_ , NOT A DAMN TURKEY YOI!" Those closest to their eldest brother scooted away from the fuming bird. An angry Phoenix was not a pleasant enemy to have. Luffy grinned at the sight of the nervous commanders.

Not wanting to draw things out any longer, Sabo nudged Ace to get his attention. Ace saw his brother glance at Whitebeard then down at Luffy, concern shining in his blue eyes. ' _So I wasn't the only one who thought Lu is acting weird._ ' He responded with an understanding nod to his brother's silent statement.

"Excuse me, Captain Whitebeard, sir." All eyes turned to the gentlemanly blond, Newgate recognizing that something about the situation had changed in the last minute. Luffy flicked his dark eyes up to see what sort of face Sabo was wearing, wondering why his brother's nervousness had increased along with Ace's.

"We thank you for your hospitality in allowing us a place to rest and providing a pleasant meal," Sabo politely said as he gave a small bow, Ace copying with a brief and stiffer version. Luffy's eyes darkened with displeasure at the display and he tilted his hat to shade his face. Sabo gave silent sigh having expected this behavior from their little brother. Ace spared a quick glance to see if the giant captain took offense to the younger's inaction.

Luffy refused to bow to these Humans. It was a form of submission and he would _not_ submit to anyone he didn't respect or acknowledge. That his brothers had submitted to these Humans after everything they were put through _because of them_ rattled his scales. He wanted to growl in protest at their behavior but a commanding look from Sabo forced it back.

Whitebeard's eyes were on the elder brothers but most of his attention centered on the small brat. The commanders had also noticed the hostile aura emanating from the child when the older duo bowed to the captain. They subtly shifted to ready themselves if the kid became violent and they needed to subdue him.

Seeing Luffy listened and was behaving, for now, Sabo met the giant captain's yellow eyes. In a firm and polite tone with a dash of frost along its edge he said, "Again, thank you for your hospitality but we must be going now. Fair winds and seas to you and your crew, Captain." Sabo tipped his hat and Ace glared at the pirates, especially Whitebeard, before giving a noncommittal grunt and turned to leave with his blond brother. Luffy went to follow but stiffened at the sight of Whitebeard pulling himself up to his full height while remaining seated.

Before the three could finish with their first step away, Newgate's calm and deep voice halted them with, "Before you go, there are a few things I wish to say to you three. They are why I requested to meet with you brats." Marco watched as the brothers tensed at his father's voice, Sabo and Ace directing an unreadable look at Luffy.

The other commanders saw it too, wondering what it meant. There was hidden fear in the elders' eyes. That they _could_ discern, but there was something else too that went unknown.

Luffy stayed half-turned from the group of Whitebeard Commanders and Captain, listening with his tense brothers to the giant Human who proceeded to say, "First, I wish to apologize to you three." The trio were stunned to see the giant captain, the famous _Whitebeard_ , close his eyes and bow in his seat as he continued, "I am sorry for trying to separate you brats and that mine and my crew's actions caused you such great distress." Newgate sat back up and examined the pirates he hoped would accept his mark and become his new sons.

All three couldn't hide their shock at what the Captain of the Whitebeard Pirates had said and done. Sabo and Ace's masks slid to the side, faces now showing off their genuine surprise and confusion. Luffy stared up at the man, surprise quickly replaced by a confused look as he studied the huge Human. Everyone was stunned when the little shrimp's face suddenly turned to cold stone, eyes narrowing and shining with anger, as he stalked up to the Captain's chair.

"Luffy, get back here you idiot!"

Sabo watched as their baby brother angrily marched up to the fearsome Whitebeard, listening as Ace called and demanded that he return. They were used of Luffy's antics, and he theirs, having lived with only each other for so long. They knew each other inside and out. Which is why Sabo had to remind Ace earlier that they needed to leave and leave _soon_ , before something set the little dragon off. They may have only a dim connection right now but Ace and Sabo could still feel the youngest's anger and confusion about _why_ these people had taken Ace return.

Sensing the anger exuding from the small pirate and the mystery still surrounding his abilities, Marco moved to confront Luffy before he got too close to Pops. Vista and Namur also tried to step forward to back Marco up knowing that the kid had been a handful when he was close to collapsing yesterday. Who knew how strong he would be after rest and food? Newgate caught their actions and motioned them to stay back. Luffy sent the surrounding commanders an evaluating look before promptly dismissing them; his brothers would watch his back, he needed to talk to the Captain.

Coming even with Marco, Luffy flicked his eyes over the man again as he recalled the Human's response to his questions the day before. ' _I want to hear it from_ Him _though._ ' Jumping up onto the armrest he'd sat on previously (opting to remain standing this time to be more even with the Captain's eyes, still higher up than his head), Luffy took a deep breath to calm his emotions. He didn't want his eyes to change colors, giving what he was away and endangering his brothers. Raising his head, Luffy stared up into Whitebeard's eyes as he growled, "Why did you steal Ace from us?"

The question wasn't loud and the growl it was delivered with distorted the words a little, but even those who were milling and watching away from the meeting clearly heard what the child said. Those closer, namely Sabo, Ace, the commanders, and Newgate, could hear and feel the clouds of suppressed and righteous anger in the brat's voice. It needed only a small push to become a full-blown storm. Sabo and Ace prayed that whatever Whitebeard might say in answer would be enough to pacify the dragon; Luffy in a true, furious rage was the stuff of nightmares to those he saw as enemies.

Whitebeard thought over his answer, sensing the need for absolute honesty while also being careful of what he should say. The brat's eyes screamed of their pain, rage, and confusion of having his brother taken. There was no fear in the dark glare. This child had no issues with attacking anyone in sight if he was not pleased with whatever Whitebeard gave him, even if it meant death. Newgate felt incredible guilt for having put that look in such a young child.

Staring straight back at the stormy black glaring up at him, Whitebeard answered, "I wish to make Fir-Fist Ace a part of my crew." Ace jolted at the words, uncertainly glancing at Sabo and seeing the other nod to say the freckled teen _had_ heard correctly.

Luffy bristled (a phantom sensation of swishing his tail back 'n forth in agitation and anger reaching him) and replied in a low tone, "Mine." Whitebeard cocked an eyebrow at the word. Louder, so the nervous commanders and his brothers could better hear, Luffy ground out, "Ace is _mine_. He's mine and Sabo's!"

Namur and Jiru widened their eyes at the amount of possessiveness in those few words. The others had already heard similar the morning before and noted this was a pale shadow of what the straw hatted brat had expressed at that time. Sabo and Ace had crept closer to the giant captain in case they needed to support Luffy. Marco noted how both seemed to glow with pride and affection at the shrimp's declaration.

The Captain gave a solemn nod before saying, "Yes, I know that now and, again, apologize for my previous commands that led to this hurt in you and your friends. Seeing how close you three brats are and how far you are willing to go for one another, I will rescind my decision to take Ace alone into my crew." Ace puzzled over those words while Sabo and Luffy had a shared suspicion of what the captain was going to say. "Instead, I would like for all three of you to join the Whitebeard Pirates, taking my mark and sailing under my flag," Newgate said as he looked each brother in the eye to show he was serious about this.

The commanders watched in delight as Ace gaped in shock and Sabo seemed to choke in surprise. Marco was a little disappointed to see little reaction from Luffy. Strawhat merely relaxed his rigid pose and glanced back at his brothers, taking in their reactions with secret enjoyment. He stared at them for a few more moments before turning back to the huge Captain.

"Ne, Giant-Banana-Mustache-Man." Now it was the commanders who were choking in disbelief at the complete 180 the brat's tone and bearing had taken. Smiling disarmingly up at the Captain, and blatantly ignoring the muted groans coming from his brothers, Luffy asked, "Are you strong?"

"Gurarara! Yes, cheeky brat. They don't call me 'Strongest Man in the World' for nothing," Whitebeard replied with a grin.

Twisting to catch a glimpse of his brothers out of the corner of his eye, still not removing Whitebeard from his field of vision, Luffy went on with a glint of seriousness in his gaze and keeping his tone light, "So if they join you'll protect them right?" The Whitebeard Pirates paused at the brat's wording.

' _It would be difficult for Lu to join. Keeping his secret with so many would be much harder than with our small crew. Not that I'm going to join anyway,_ ' Ace thought. He winced as his headache throbbed for a second.

' _I think I know_ why _he asked that_ ,' Sabo mused, flicking his gaze to Ace quickly before going back to watching Luffy's back. ' _Or, at least part of the reason. But the way implied he wouldn't join…_ '

Vista, Izou, Marco, and Thatch were caught on Luffy's question. The straw hatted shrimp was essentially _denying_ an offer of joining their famous crew—being part of their family—with those words. It puzzled them after seeing and hearing what happened when the small raven was kept away from the older two. Why would the kid _not_ join with his brothers if that was his reaction to separation?

Newgate gave the brat an assessing look, curious as to the reasoning behind the child's question. At length he replied, "Anyone who joins my crew and sails with us is family and we protect family." Narrowing his eyes, Whitebeard questioned, "From your previous query, I take it you aren't going to take up my flag and mark with your friends?"

A troubled expression crossed Lu's face as he looked down at his brothers, only to disappear in a flash to be replaced by a close-eyed grin stretching across his cheeks. The sight of _that look_ had Ace and Sabo groaning and introducing a palm to their face. Everyone looked on in cluelessness at the odd action. Luffy's broad grin only grew bigger at his brothers' obvious exasperation.

"Shishishishi!" Straw hat sitting square on his dark head and placing his fists on his hips, Luffy turned towards Whitebeard and declared with extreme pride and confidence, "I can't join unless you let _me_ be the Captain, Giant Old Man." Half the commanders face-faulted, the rest stared at the grinning boy under a too-big straw hat in stupefied silence. Marco looked appalled and scandalized at the very _idea_ of calling the shrimp _Captain_.

"Oh? And why is that, you cheeky brat?"

"Shishishishi! Because! The Pirate King can't sail under any flag but his own!" It was said in such a way that it made Luffy's proclamation sound like a confirmed and obvious fact. The sky was blue. The ocean was wide. Day follows the night. This brat was going to become King of the Pirates. The Whitebeard Pirates were left utterly speechless and their Captain astonished but letting out a loud guffaw.

"Gurararara! Big words, cheeky brat!" Newgate really liked this brat's spunk and the fierce determination glowing in those dark eyes when he said those words. Shifting his yellow gaze from the grinning straw hatted brat to the ex-co-captain pair before him, Whitebeard said, "Fine then. Perhaps your friends—"

"Brothers." Ace and Sabo went rigid, eyes widening in shock and faces turning to stone, at their brother handing that piece of information out to these strangers.

Marco hid his surprise behind the façade of disinterest at how easily the tiny kid had shared that with his family. Thatch didn't bother and openly stared at the small boy up on Pops' chair. The brothers were tight-lipped about anything personal (the Spade crew attested to that vehemently) and extremely distrusting of others.

' _But Strawhat just blurted out to a bunch of unknown pirates that they were "brothers", yoi._ '

"What was that, squirt?" Luffy glared over at Kingdew. He didn't appreciate comments about his small size.

"I _said_ 'brothers', Big Funny-Pants." Sabo smirked and Ace hid his chuckles behind his hand. The guy _did_ have odd pants on; brown with dark green horizontal stripes in the legs and a lighter green sash holding them up. Kingdew scowled as a few of his brothers muffled their snickers, or at least tried to. "Ace and Sabo are my _big brothers_. Quit calling them my friends."

Vista frowned at the three. Normally, if someone was your brother and you are very close to them it was a given that they also be called a friend. He'd only heard people claim such a thing if they _didn't_ like their sibling. ' _Yet the kid very obviously loves the older pair, so why make the distinction?'_

Sabo and Ace didn't mind their little brother's words. To his kind, there was a big distinction between just being friends with another and being family. That Luffy wanted to impress this clarification onto the Whitebeard Pirates was very humbling to the older two and resulted in a gentle warmth bubbling up in their chests. Ace's flames responded to their master's glee and wrapped tighter about the boy's frame, growing warmer and a little brighter. Still… _why was Luffy telling these bastards this!?_

Smiling at the rival crew, giving Whitebeard an unreadable, blank look for a second, Luffy hopped down and practically bounced over to his brothers. Once he reached them, Luffy took his usual spot between them and latched onto Ace's side. The dragon grabbed Sabo's sleeve and leaned up to whisper something in his ear. Whitebeard glanced down to see if Marco caught what was being said, but his son gave subtle shake of his head.

' _If the other two brats join then I'm sure the smallest will, too._ ' Whitebeard smirked as he looked over Sabo and Ace; there was still a way to get all three as his new sons. "How about you two? Will you become part of the family?"

Sabo and Luffy drew closer to their oldest sibling, taking comfort in the flames gently holding them. Ace, frowning, glared up at the giant captain. "What do you mean 'family'? This is your _crew_ , isn't it?"

Adopting a serious face, though his eyes softened and gained a thoughtful look, Newgate replied, "Those who join my crew and bear my mark are my family. They are my sons and daughters as I am honored with being their father. So will you accept my offer? Take my mark and become my son?"

Orange cowboy hat shadowing his face and staring at the ground, Ace's flames licked his shoulders, slowly spreading down his arms as the giant pirate spoke. Sabo had tilted his hat down to hide his eyes, mouth set in a grim line. Luffy clung tighter to his brothers, eyes roving about the area and carefully watching the rival crew's actions. Marco caught Luffy unobtrusively tap Sabo's arm six times with his finger. The blond gentleman responded with eight finger-taps against the younger's side.

' _What was that, yoi? A signal?'_ In case they were readying to attack Pops or one of his siblings, Marco subtly moved to stand more in front of his father.

The Whitebeard Pirates watched as Ace flared with fire a handful of seconds after their Captain finished speaking. Many were dumbfounded that the two who called the fire teen "brother" didn't move away from the blazing ex-captain or seem to be bothered with the intense flames. The fiery threads wrapped around Sabo and Luffy grew thicker and flared randomly. Izou thought the strands of fire almost looked possessive with how they clung to the boys' bodies.

Throwing a pissed glare at the giant captain who had kidnapped him, Ace jerked his flaming left arm to point up at the man. In a blazing rage (literally) Ace shouted, "No way in _hell_ am I joining you bastards! I'd drown myself before ever calling you ' _father'_! Watch your back, old man, because I _will_ take your head and be the man known for defeating the _Great Captain Whitebeard!_ "

Naturally, none of the Whitebeard Pirates took this comment lying down. Seeing the numerous weapons being brought out and aimed at them, Luffy and Sabo adopted fighting stances. Sabo faced right with his back to Ace; feet spread apart and knees bent, he put on a pair of gloves hidden in his coat and raised his fists. Luffy sprung to guard Ace's left and took a similar stance as Sabo, though he had one arm cocked back slightly. Ace's fire went from merely coiling around their arms to blanketing their limbs entirely. It became a swirling, semi-transparent, thin suit of orange and yellow flames on them, leaving only their necks and heads uncovered.

Vista raised an eyebrow at the unconscious way the two had moved simultaneously to create a triangular formation. Like his brothers, the swordsman had his dual-blades out and ready should the brats attack his family. The growls coming from Sabo and Luffy didn't faze him as much as they had the day before, he honestly expected such a thing with what he knew of them. What he _hadn't_ expected was the strength of their defense (and he knew several of the other commanders were thinking the same).

' _If Ace took up the position being left for him, there would be very few unguarded openings in their formation_ ,' Vista mused. He had to wonder if some of those openings were on purpose and hidden traps behind them. It wouldn't be unusual and with how these three appeared to operate it was a viable possibility. None of them would know for certain unless they saw the brothers actually fight.

Only the ship's Captain remained seated and at ease with the situation. Raising his hand (and watching the brothers tense as Ace also readied for a possible battle) he calmly said, "Stop." The word echoed about the deck as all pirates turned their eyes to the giant man. "Now, everyone return to your assigned duties." The look he gave his sons had them swallowing their protests and grudgingly putting away their weapons.

Ace, Luffy, and Sabo stayed poised to fight as they warily watched the retreating pirates. A glance at the old, giant Human had Luffy relaxing minutely. The Captain didn't have any hostile intent coming from him and Luffy thought he sensed something…odd? Different? He didn't know what the name of the feeling was at the moment but recognized it as one he'd felt when examining the Human earlier. Whatever it was, he at least knew it wasn't 'bad'. Ace and Sabo sensed their youngest brother easing up and followed suit. None dropped their guard, however.

At stern look from their father, the commanders also sheathed or holstered their assorted weapon choices. They glowered at the brothers for their threat towards Pops but another glance from Whitebeard had them backing down.

Gazing between the hopeful 'soon-to-be-sons' and his current ones, Newgate said, "This meeting is over. Boys, I believe you also have some work to do. Brats, thank you for agreeing to meet with me and I apologize for my previous actions against you." With that, Captain Whitebeard rose from the chair (Sabo and Ace taking a half-step back at the damn _size_ of the huge pirate) and made for his cabin. He caught Marco's eye before leaving and gave a flick of his yellows at the three young brothers.

The brothers stared at the commanders for a few moments before, with a few huffs, the division leaders also exited the scene. Ace's flames died back down to the usual tendrils that wrapped and danced about his brothers' arms.

Exchanging looks, the three turned and headed for the stern where Ace would signal for their crew to come get them. Distracted by their raging migraines (and cursing the Whitebeard Pirates for upping their misery) Ace and Sabo didn't notice the quiet presence of a certain bird trailing after them. Luffy decided not to call attention to the stupid fire-turkey since the man wasn't doing anything and was staying a fair distance away from them.

* * *

Marco knew that only Strawhat noticed him despite suppressing his haki. The way the brat had discreetly turned his head the barest amount in his direction before facing forward was a clear indicator he'd been caught. ' _They must've had training in haki, yoi. The shrimp shouldn't be able to sense me if they didn't._ ' The phoenix hung back for a few moments as he watched the boys gaze out to sea, likely looking for their vessel and rowdy crew. ' _Might as well get this over with, yoi._ '

"Your ship's not waiting for you, yoi." The trio exchanged bewildered glances (for different reasons) before turning a questioning look onto the blond First Division Commander.

Glaring balefully at the Phoenix-zoan, Ace growled, "What do you mean ' _not waiting_ '?"

Marco shrugged before ascending the rest of the stairs to the rear deck. Drawing close to the boys, making sure to stay at least eight feet away, he replied, "I mean it's gone. Your ship and crew are no longer in the area, yoi."

Bristling, Sabo clenched his gloved hands as he coolly inquired, "Where are they then? If any of you lowlife, miscreants harmed our crew—"

Marco calmly watched the three glaring brothers as Sabo continued and was about to open his mouth to placidly state that the captains needn't worry about their ex-crewmates when Luffy suddenly piped up.

"I think they're fine, Sabo." The three pirates looked down at the straw hatted teen. Staring up at the lazy blond, head tilted to the side, Luffy continued, "But…it's true they aren't here either. Where did they go, pineapple-head?" Ace internally smirked at seeing the man's brow give and irritated twitch.

"It's Marco, yoi. Your crew is safe, too. They were getting rowdy so we sent them with another of our ships that met up with us last night. We didn't let them bring your ship so that they couldn't do anything to cause a headache either, yoi. It was old and really worn so we burnt last night after your crew left. We took the liberty of retrieving your things and placing them in a couple rooms set aside for you three." The brothers stared in shock at the First Division Commander.

"You bastards went through our stuff!?"

"You destroyed our damn ship!?"

"Eeeeh!? We can't leave!?"

Marco raised his hands in attempt to pacify the outraged teens. "No, we did not go through your stuff yoi. It was packed away by your crew and I made sure nobody here looked through it. Pops wants you to join us and didn't want your old crew causing trouble so he ordered you ship destroyed. Welcome to the _Moby Dick_ , yoi."

Sabo raised a gloved hand to rub tiredly at his forehead. The day wasn't even half-done and already he didn't foresee this damn migraine leaving anytime soon. Ace wasn't about to show how badly his own throbbing head was bothering him, choosing to pace near the brothers while cursing the "Whitebeard Bastards". Luffy silently looked between the stoic commander and his very upset brothers. Idly, he thought about the steps the Captain had taken to make sure he and his brothers wouldn't be able to easily escape the giant ship.

"I suppose this explains Captain Whitebeard's phrasing of his last apology to us during that meeting," Sabo muttered, shooting a glare at Marco. He didn't like how relaxed the man was looking about the news he was delivering to them.

Marco watched as the older two continued to mutter and curse about what had befallen them. "If you want, I can show you to where your things are. Afterwards, Bay wants to check you three over so she has a medical file on-hand for when you get hurt, yoi."

"Don't expect us to be staying with you kidnapping assholes! We're getting off at the next island this damn hunk of wood gets even close to!" Marco turned to look at a furious Ace.

Raising a thin eyebrow he replied, "That will be quite a while, yoi. We stopped to resupply before picking you up at that island and have no plans to head for port in the foreseeable future."

Sabo hid his dismay upon hearing this. Luffy may be large now, but he was still too small to freely swim about in the open waters of the New World for a great length of time. They'd noticed that more giant Sea Kings lived in this part of the Grand Line than in Paradise. Lu wasn't able to fly yet and though he could swim for long periods of time before needing to rest, it was too dangerous to try ferrying him and Ace to an island an unknown distance away. Not just because of the dangers beneath the waves, but also the extremely fickle weather of the New World.

The phoenix observed as Ace stopped his ranting and pacing to give a concerned glance at Luffy. Sabo raised his eyes to meet steel grey as Ace exchanged a knowing look with the younger blond. Luffy wanted his brothers to get some rest so that they could get over their headaches in peace.

A tug on his sleeve had Sabo glancing into beseeching dark orbs. Giving a pointed look between him and Ace, Luffy flicked his eyes in Marco's direction before resting them back on Sabo's features. Sighing, Sabo silenced Ace's forming protest with a glare as he turned a cool and blank face towards the division commander. "We'll accept that offer of being shown to where our things are currently stored and also request to be shown where we might clean ourselves up." Marco nodded.

"Alright, yoi. Do you want stop by the Infirmary before or after going to your rooms?" Luffy stiffened and sidled up next to Ace, who had come to stand next his younger brothers again.

"Neither, Commander, sir." Marco's eyes narrowed at this and he swept a critical gaze over the three teens.

"Bay was in charge of taking care of Ace's wounds while he was here. She'll want to check you over, especially when she finds out that you've removed your bandages without her approval yoi." The commander's light blues turn to take in Sabo and Luffy as he says, "She also wants to give you two a checkup, Luffy in particular, yoi." Feeling his baby brother give a small shudder at those words, Ace wrapped an arm around Luffy and pulled him even closer.

Shooting a fiery glare at Marco, Ace hissed, " _He_ is not _going_. None of us are stepping foot in your damn infirmary. I am _not_ , nor ever _will be_ , part of your shitty crew so you can tell this 'Bay' person to _shove it_! I am _fine_ and don't need the help of you kidnapping asses." Marco's expression darkened at hearing the slurs against his family.

Seeing the commander about to reprimand Ace, and not wanting to deal with that on top of everything else, Sabo cut in with a mild tone, "Despite his vulgar language, Ace is correct in that you have no authority over us." Marco turned his attention to the blond, taking in the younger pirate's stony face and cold eyes. "We have dealt with worse using far less and on our own. If this 'Bay' asks, tell them 'thanks for their concern, but we are fine and don't require assistance'."

 _'Bay is_ not _going to like hearing that, yoi_ ,' Marco thought with a mental grimace. The woman was going to chew him out for doing this but he knew it would be very bad to try and force the brothers to go see her. ' _She's still pissed about Ace melting a bedframe to block the entrance to the infirmary when he last escaped, too._ '

Luffy watched as the bird-man gave them a calculating look then seemed to come to a decision. Nodding, the veteran pirate told them, "Fine, yoi. I'll take you to your new rooms and show you where the nearest bathroom is."

Hopping onto Ace's back and relaxing into the warm bits of fire that flickered into life to gently wrap around his arms and shoulders, Luffy glanced behind him to affirm Sabo's location. Smiling reassuringly at the smaller raven, Sabo took off his left glove and placed the hand at the small of Luffy's back. Checking that his brothers were ready, Ace set off after the blond First Division Commander.

Perhaps he could turn this unfortunate circumstance to his benefit somehow. An idea was forming in his head but he wanted to run it by Luffy and Sabo first so they wouldn't be taken by surprise later.

* * *

 **A/N: So? What did you all think? Not as long as the previous chapter but felt this was a good place to end it. Did anything sound weird or awkward? Am thinking mostly about the conversation between the brothers and Whitebeard (which Luffy completely, totally, and unashamedly hijacked!) and how that went, but tell me if something else stuck out as needing work.**

 **Just so that you don't have to ask or wonder, Luffy brings up his Devil Fruit ability next chapter. He doesn't normally hold a grudge against others but he is definitely carrying the torch for the WBP, so we'll see some of that next chapter as well.**

 **Ace's 'melting a bed to the infirmary door' will also be mentioned. How else would he have gotten away from the infirmary without anyone following him or raising the alarm?**

 **Next chapter should be out around next weekend if all goes well. Will let you know if anything changes!**

 **Think I got most of them but if anybody sees a missing word, something misspelled, or a repeated word/phrase let me know!**

 **Terms:**

 **Gúżo —[joo-zh-oh] Closest meaning would be 'idiot' or 'stupid one'.**

 **Kiví —[key-vee] ****Roughly translates to "energy support", it is most similar to Armament Haki. Drakkón use _ki_ to strengthen/enhance their body's natural physical abilities. Useful for augmenting attacks or defensive moves made using their own body. Rarely used on outside objects as Drakkón possess their own built-in weapons and defenses. Also, like Armament, it is used to immediately bypass the natural defenses of Devil Fruit users. Careful and long training is needed to effectively use _ki_ in this way as it is easy to damage the areas being augmented. Even experienced masters of this are careful to not overstretch their boundaries as it can lead to permanent damage.**


	8. The First Week!

**A/N: Thanks for the continued support and feedback everyone! Still amazing to me how well this story is doing. Honestly never expected the sheer amount of favorites and follows to get so high, thought I'd be lucky to break 100 on either and I'm almost tripling that on both. So thank you very very very VERY much!**

 **Sorry this is late, had some bugs to work out and then mother had boob surgery (didn't think she needed it at her age but whatever). Had to look after her all weekend when I wasn't shrimping on Saturday (spot prawns are AWESOME!). To make up for being late, I am making this another long chapter and adding a scene where Sabo finally remembers something important (too bad for Ace).**

 **Yes, I know last chapter was a bit slow but I wanted to set a couple things up for later. Also, I felt that ASL meeting with Whitebeard for the first time (not counting when they fought the WBP) should be the main point in its own chapter. Don't worry, there will be more action in this one. Promise!**

 **DISCLAIMER! Don't own One Piece or have any sort of claim over its domain!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: The First Week! Debut of Assassin Ace**

* * *

Sabo, Luffy, and Ace were sitting on the _Moby_ 's stern railing enjoying the afternoon sun and trying to catch lunch with a homemade fishing pole. Ace was scowling and rubbing a bump on his head. Luffy was staring down at the point where the cable disappeared into the sea. Sabo was holding the pole, giving it a little jerk every now and then, and shooting questioning glances at his brothers.

After Marco had shown them where their stuff was and the nearest bathroom to their rooms, the man had left to go deliver their message to Bay (who they learned was the Head Nurse/Doctor onboard). The three proceeded to check their things for signs of tampering but even Luffy (using his nose) confirmed Marco's promise that no one had gone through their belongings. Grabbing new clothes, they headed to the bathroom to give themselves a quick cleaning. Ace's narcolepsy hit as they were getting dressed and, rather than waking him up, Sabo and Luffy snuck him back to the room set up for them to sleep in. Luffy prepped their old nest (excited to see it had been brought over) then helped Sabo maneuver Ace's deadweight into a comfortable position before Sabo also laid down to rest.

When he woke up, Sabo found that Luffy had gotten out the special salve they used for their injuries. Luffy turned a happy smile on him before going back to digging through the chest he was crouched in front of. The black tail coiled around his feet unwound to grab something off another pile before stretching back to Sabo. The blond grinned at his baby brother's back as he took the pipe being 'handed' to him. Lu gave a small "Ha!" and Sabo looked up to see the smaller teen bounce back to the nest holding a spare knife for Ace. He mentally told Lu to wake the sleeping idiot up so they could treat what remained of his wounds (eliciting another joyful shout and rubbery hug).

Sabo talked to Luffy and Ace about what they were to do now (seeing as Whitebeard had taken their crew and sunk their old ship. He'd been applying the salve to Ace's back and arms, leaving the front to Luffy, when Ace came up with a _brilliant_ idea. Sabo's immediate response was to punch his brother in the head before ranting about him being an idiot with a death wish. The ranting had only stopped when Luffy inquired as to what an "assassin" was. After some careful explaining from Sabo (complete with a few glares at Ace), Luffy shrugged and gave Ace the 'okay' as long as he followed a couple rules. He didn't know what these "rules" were but Ace agreed to whatever their youngest brother had told him.

Lu then moaned that he was hungry so they left the room to go look for supplies they could use to fish. They wandered the ship, staying out of sight, until Lu mentally told them he'd picked up the scent of wood stain. Sabo had him follow the scent in the hopes it would lead them to a workshop or similar place that might have what they were searching for. Finding the room in question, they breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that there were only a few ( _large_ ) people inside. Ace kept watch on those in the room, Sabo the corridor, and Luffy took the task of sneaking about to grab whatever they could use to build a fishing pole. Five minutes, a spool of strong cable, and a large steel pipe later saw them exiting the lower decks and making their way to the stern of the ship.

Now Sabo sat contemplating their new situation while fishing for a late lunch. He knew he was forgetting something that he promised himself to do but couldn't remember what it was. It definitely related Ace judging by the irritation that rose up whenever he glanced at the older teen. But what was he irritated about?

* * *

Pirates were jumping to get out of the path of the scowling, blue-haired doctor, all wondering which of their unfortunate siblings was the target of her obvious wrath. She ignored the fearful looks and jumpy men. Her only concern was the three brats—apparently brothers from what she'd been told—who were _supposed_ to be in her infirmary right now.

Bay huffed in annoyance. She had agreed to her father's request to give them space for the night and let them rest in peace. Today, she had gone hunting for them after being informed that their meeting with Pops was finished but then _Marco_ intercepted her. After hearing the trio of brats had "declined" her "offer", Bay had laid into the damn bird about how she wasn't giving the teens a choice and demanded he tell her where they were. She was going to drag their asses back to her infirmary if she had to, but they were going one way or another.

"Says they seem 'uncomfortable with the idea of going to the infirmary', huh? Well I'll give them a reason to be 'uncomfortable' when I finally get my hands on them," Bay muttered. A dark smile lit her face when she caught sight of the doors to the rooms Marco gave the brats to use.

Opening the first door, she found nothing in the storage closet other than some of what she assumed to be the trio's belongings. Shutting the door with a curse, she moved to the next storage room set aside for their 'guests'. Flinging the door open, she was barely able to see what was inside before a thick cloud of white burst in her face.

Spluttering, Bay wiped the powdery substance from her eyes and face. With her vision cleared, she looked down to see that she was covered in the white powder which also dusted a wide area of the corridor and floor around her. Peering back into the room revealed more of the teens' belongings piled near the front like a makeshift barrier of sorts. A small and cannon-like device sat wedged between two chests with its opening pointing right up at her. Glancing to the handle of the door, she saw a string that looped around a few heavier objects before leading behind the chests and their trapped contraption. At the back of the storage room (a little larger than the other she had first examined) was the 'nest' that her brother had mentioned. No sign of her intended targets though.

Growling with renewed frustration, Bay slams the door and stalks off into the ship. First the damn fire-brat burns her infirmary, then he melts a damned bed to the doorframe, and both times he left without _her_ medical approval. Next, she hears that two more rambunctious brats come aboard and need medical attention, only she's told to wait and let them calm down. _Fine!_ But somehow the brats got it into their tiny, little minds they can refuse her demands to see them. _Now_ , she discovers they have the _gall_ to set a trap for her (logically, Bay knows it wasn't intended specifically for _her_ , but anyone who happened to open the door).

' _They are so screwed when I finally get my hands on them!'_

* * *

"Yo, Visty! You seen those three brothers recently? They never came in for lunch." Vista looked up to see a grinning Thatch making a show of searching the deck with a hand shading his eyes.

Going back to polishing his swords, the large man inclined his head in the direction of the stern as he replied, "They're at the rear-deck, fishing."

"Is anybody over there?" Thatch frowned slightly at seeing Vista shake his head. "What if one of them falls in? Or they all fall in?" The swordsman jerked a thumb up but otherwise didn't answer. Raising an eyebrow at the non-answer the cook looked up, trying to see what his brother had gestured at. ' _So that's where the fire-chicken went…_ '

Marco was perched, back leaning against the mast and legs dangling to either side, on the yard above the mainsail of the rear-most mast. Even from down on the deck Thatch could tell Marco's sole focus was on the three brothers and whatever they were up to.

"He's been up there since before I came up, if you were wondering." Thatched hummed to show he heard.

"Well, I am going to go greet our 'brothers-to-be' and ask why they didn't come down to eat." Walking off towards the stairs that ran up to the stern deck he muttered, "They didn't have a problem with eating my food this morning. The hell is their issue now?"

* * *

Luffy was lying on his back near the rail, basking in the warm sun, and finishing eating another fish that Sabo had caught. They'd gotten lucky and hit a school of large fish earlier, many of them between forty and sixty pounds. Ace was put in charge of cooking the caught fish (for obvious reasons) and separating them into two piles: one for Lu, the other for him and Sabo. Both older teens had made Luffy promise not to steal from their pile and to eat from only his own. Lu grudgingly agreed but perked up when he saw his older brothers purposely putting the larger cooked fish in his pile and also giving him more fish in general.

Off to the younger raven's right were his older brothers. Ace was sitting and leaning against the rail, legs stretched out in front of him, hat tilted down to shade his face, and had the rim of Sabo's top hat wedged under his right thigh. A small stack of fish lay to his left and behind where Sabo sat on the rail still trying to catch more food. He caught Luffy eyeing the fish as he picked one up to hand up to the curly-haired blond; he wasn't worried about the boy stealing anything, but the pout on the younger's face as he reached for his own pile was cute. Sabo took the proffered fish from Ace's hand and sent a mild wave of gratitude to the other's mind.

Movement from high up caught the youngest's attention and Luffy pulled the rim of his hat over his forehead to better shade his eyes. The pineapple-turkey that had been watching the brothers for the past hour had stood up and was looking down at something on the lower deck. Lu absently watched the Human while grabbing another fish to munch on. He could just make out an unhappy expression on the man's face before he jumped down to the deck. Luffy watched as Mango turned his arms into blue, flaming wings, marveling at them as the Fruit-user descended and vanished from sight.

Ace grinned at the new pout crossing Luffy's face, sharing his amusement with Sabo. Both chuckled at the affronted look their baby brother shot them. When Marco had first appeared to keep watch over them, Luffy had immediately asked if he could eat the man. Sabo had simply had said no, ignoring Luffy's growling stomach and Ace's laughter. It didn't make anything easier for the middle child when Ace had piped up that he wouldn't mind seeing what a flaming pineapple-turkey tasted like either.

Huffing at his brothers' amusement, Lu pulled his hat over most of his face. He left the lower part uncovered so that he could continue eating. Ace smiled and went back to dozing and snacking on his own fish, hoping Sabo would catch a big one soon. Both piles were getting low and Luffy only had a few large fish left. Ace and Sabo would be subjected to Lu's puppy-face and be forced to give up what was left of _their_ fish to get rid of the evil look.

Luffy had just put one of his last fish into his mouth when he heard someone coming quietly up the stairs to the rear-deck. Ace and Sabo felt the dragon's brief nudge of warning and tensed. They recognized the odd hairstyle as belonging to the cook who had given them breakfast earlier but kept their guard up. None of them were used of others treading silently or very quietly unless they were up to something. Prey did it to avoid predators. Predators did it to stalk and attack prey.

* * *

Thatch ascended the stairs to where the three brothers were "fishing". Why they were trying to catch lunch instead of just going down to the galley and eating like normal human beings he didn't know. When he got high enough to see over the landing, Thatch first noticed the two small mounds of roasted fish. Next to the smaller stack was Luffy with half a big fish hanging out of his mouth, straw hat hiding most of his face (though the smaller raven's head was angled in the cook's direction). Ace was sitting on the farther side of the prostrate shrimp, leaning against the rail and glaring from beneath the bright orange cowboy hat atop his head. Sabo was facing out to sea but had turned his head to watch Thatch from the corner of his right eye.

Thatch stopped when there were only a few steps between him and the top of the stairs, not wanting to crowd the three youths. He smiled at the younger pirates, hoping to ease the tension he saw in the stillness of their forms. It was disheartening to see glints of suspicion enter their eyes instead but kept the cheery look on his face, hiding the darker thoughts swirling in his head. Thatch saw the golden straw hat lift and move back from the smallest boy's face so it only shaded the dark eyes.

Luffy continued snacking on the large fish as he looked over the cook. Not wanting to discourage the younger pirate's examination Thatch stayed still and quiet. From what happened this morning and with Marco yesterday, it was obvious the fastest way of getting to talk to all three brothers (willingly and with little conflict) was to get Luffy's 'stamp of approval'. He saw Ace shifting his gaze from a no longer idly-munching-on-his-fish-Luffy (Thatch hadn't even noticed when they boy stopped) to the Fourth Commander and back. Sabo's eye grew cold and he saw the teen lower the makeshift fishing pole into a position that would allow the pirate to use it as a weapon.

Curious as to why the three had become increasingly anxious and guarded (he hadn't _done_ anything other than just stand here quietly after all) he looked down at the prone, straw hatted raven. Luffy was focusing intently on something at his waist, though the kid's serious expression was a little hampered by the blank look and fish sticking out of his mouth. Tilting his head to see what had captured the kid's attention, Thatch saw nothing but his normal white chef's coat and matching pants, his black belt, twin-swords, and brown flats. He paused.

Flicking hazel eyes to watch Luffy, he touched the hilt of one of his swords. Luffy immediately tensed and the cook heard a low growl rumble from Ace's throat. At the edge of his vision Sabo twisted more to face him and clutched tighter at the rod in his hands. Well _that_ was certainly disconcerting. They were acting like he would attack them any second!

Thinking fast, not wanting Ace or Sabo to leap up and attack him like they looked about ready to do, Thatch quickly said, "Ah, sorry! I'm so used of them being there when I wander about that I completely forgot about them." Ace and Sabo didn't go to attack him but they weren't backing down either; Luffy was glancing from the swords, up to his face, then back down to the swords. Giving an apologetic smile to the brothers, he went on, "Give me a second so I can put them somewhere, 'kay?"

Looking around, Thatch quickly found there wasn't a really good spot to put his blades. He could set them right there on the steps, but there was the chance a wave might send them sliding off into the sea. Going back down the main deck and finding a place was out because then his trusty blades would be too far away. What if they got attacked or a sea monster showed up? The chef could put them inside the navigation room/wheelhouse, but that meant going up the last few steps and closer to the boys so he could reach the door.

Not looking at the tense teens—because didn't Marco say staring right at them wasn't good?—Thatch carefully undid the ties attaching the swords to his belt. Holding them up with one hand to show he wasn't going to use them, Thatch asked, "Um, I don't have anywhere over here to put them, so do you mind if I come up and put them inside the door there?" Luffy swallowed the last half of his fish (causing the commander's eyes to bug out a bit) and tilted his head to get a view of the door on the wall by the stairs.

As Luffy's dark orbs went back to rest on Thatch, Sabo answered, "That's fine, I suppose…"

Grinning at the positive answer (ignoring the hesitance and suspicion in the blond teen's voice and bearing), Thatch walked up to the door and opened it. Placing his twin-blades standing up just inside to the right of the door, he glanced at the navigators giving him curious looks. Puffing his cheeks, Thatch called out, "I'm just placing these babies right here for now. I'm not up to anything or hiding from anyone so quit lookin' at me like that!" He closed the door on a bunch of grumbling and mutters about how they weren't involved in whatever the commander was up to "this time".

Turning back to the brothers, Thatch saw Sabo was once again concentrating on fishing, Ace was glaring at him still, and Luffy was reaching for the second to last fish laying on the planks near him.

' _Well…they're not stiff as boards anymore, at least._ ' Crossing over to sit by the rail near Luffy's head, the Fourth Commander noted how all three pairs of eyes followed him carefully. ' _Though they could relax a little. Not like I'm going to jump up and attack them._ ' Thatch stopped and promptly sat down when he saw Luffy tense and seemed about to let out a growl. He couldn't help a small smile at seeing the flash of surprise briefly flit through grey eyes.

* * *

Catching a flare of blue and yellow rising up the mizzen-mast (placed behind the wheelhouse) and disappear in the lower crow's nest, Ace flicked his eyes back to the auburn-haired pirate. Luffy may be fine with the bastard, but that smile was suspicious. Sabo and Ace didn't trust anyone who could smile so easily at strangers; it meant they were after something. Only Lu could smile like that and not mean anything by it.

"To what do we owe the pleasure of this visit, Commander Chef?" Ace scowled at the larger man.

"Ain't it obvious, Sabo?" Luffy grabbed a fish (the last from his "pile") and watched Pom-Pom glance from Sabo down to Ace. He could feel his brothers' wariness and dislike of the white-dressed Human through the light touch of their minds but thought it was a little undeserved at the moment. Ace answered himself with, "He's either here because the fire-turkey bastard up there wants help 'babysitting the prisoners', or to ' _talk'_ with us about threatening the _old man_."

Thatch's previous smile fell a little at hearing Sabo's cold and unfriendly tone. It vanished under a look of dismay and slight shock at Ace's angry accusation. Luffy wasn't saying anything, just staring at him with wary eyes as he chewed on one of the roasted fish.

' _Kinda surprised the little guy isn't talking. He was very chatty earlier with Pops._ ' Thatch shifted a little in his seat at the boys' stares, trying to think of how best to say why he came to see them. ' _Kids look about ready to bite my head off and I haven't_ done _anything yet!'_ Well…that was only partially true and Luffy had already chomped on his arm.

Deciding to say 'screw it' to planning ahead, the Fourth Commander took a deep breath and just blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"I'm really sorry!" The desperate and ashamed plea was met with silence.

The brothers shared mutual feelings of surprise and shock at how upset the chef sounded. Ace and Sabo exchanged a sense of curiosity at what the man was apologizing for while the three of them stared back into pleading hazel eyes. Luffy sent both a vague impression that he might know what the man was talking about.

Thatch's gaze darted between the three teens. From the confusion in their eyes he could tell they had no idea what he was apologizing for. ' _Right. Probably should have put_ a little _more thought into that._ '

Luffy tilted his head, watching as the older man rubbed the neck of his neck and muttered, "Uh, that didn't make much sense did it?" Turning to face the brothers more directly, Thatch looked at each of them before focusing on Luffy. "What I meant was I'm really, _really_ sorry for how I grabbed you yesterday," he said while bowing almost in half, a hand braced on one of his knees and the other planted on the wood decking.

Sabo's grip on the metal pole tightened in anger and frustration at the memory. How Luffy panicked at the touch of a stranger; the fear that exploded in his mind from the dragon that almost caused him to blackout. The blond's own helplessness as he watched Lu struggle in desperation to get away and come to Sabo's aid. Ace stiffened at the swirling negativity he sensed in Sabo's mind that reflected the dark impressions in his own thoughts.

Thatch guiltily watched fire lick at Ace's shoulders and arms while spreading to touch and wrap about a limb from the younger brothers. Both Sabo and Ace shared the same look of pure animosity as they glared at the Fourth Commander. Luffy stared at the obviously contrite commander for several seconds, only once subtly twitching his gaze to the occupied crow's nest above.

Swallowing his fish, Luffy sat up and looked each of his brothers in the eye. /( _Calm Fine Good_ ) Stop. Not hurt. Fine./

Thatch was surprised when he saw the flames fade from existence and the older pairs of smoldering eyes soften as Sabo and Ace felt the cool wave mentally wash over them. He straightened from the awkward sitting bow when he noticed Luffy's focus was back on him.

"I'm not sorry for biting you," Luffy stated, glancing down at the hidden wound. Ace smirked and Sabo turned back around to continue fishing, deciding to let Lu handle the man. "Or for kicking you."

Thatch numbly shook his head as he replied, "Uh… No. No, it's fine. I deserved it—sorta—and I can't really blame you for doing that either." Honestly the man was a little confused. Luffy had none of the expected hostility in his eyes or body language. If anything, Thatch thought the kid's blank expression held a sense of curiosity in it.

"Then why are you saying sorry?" The commander stared at the confused teen and wondered if he hadn't been clear enough in his apology.

His response was an eloquent, "Huh?"

Luffy huffed, crossing his arms as he cocked his head.

"You said 'sorry for grabbing me'." Thatch nodded, still puzzling over where he had lost the kid. "Sabo said when people say 'sorry' after a fight it's 'cause they want the other person to say 'sorry' too. But I'm _not_ sorry so I don't want to say that!"

Okay… Now _Thatch_ was the one who was lost.

Sabo twisted to catch a glimpse of the chef's face before quickly turning back around and tried to keep his shoulders from shaking. Ace joined in with Sabo's silent laughter, choosing to hide his grin in the shadow of his hat. Thatch knew the two older brothers were probably laughing their asses off at the expression on his face as he just stared at the baffled smaller raven.

Luffy caught the distant sound of an amused chuckle and idly thought about why the bird-man was staying all the way up there if he was obviously listening in on what they were saying. Being hungry, his mind naturally detoured to how the blue chicken might taste before sadly remembering Sabo and Ace warning him to not eat the Zoan.

"Um, no. I didn't say sorry and expect you to be sorry too, kid," Thatch said, a little mystified by the pout that had randomly shown up on the straw hatted boy's face. "I wanted to let you know that I felt bad for how my grabbing you scared you."

Luffy puffed his cheeks out and scowled at the Human then turned to his left and grumbled, "I-I wasn't scared, dammit. Wasn't scared at all!"

Thatch sweatdropped as he thought, ' _This kid is a terrible liar._ '

Deciding to try and save some of his little brother's dignity (which he had doubts even existed sometimes) Ace butted in to ask, "That all? If it is then go and leave us alone."

"You want me to go already? Why? I thought we were finally bonding!"

Luffy looked confused again. Ace glared with a look that said 'I don't associate with idiots'. Sabo turned to stare at Thatch from the corner of his right eye that clearly implied the pompadoured man to be one of those so-called 'idiots'.

Seeing Luffy open his mouth to ask the man a question, Ace quickly said, "No, Lu. We are not ' _bonding'_ with the idiot." / He means 'getting to know' him. Not actually 'bonding' like us, remember?/

Luffy mouthed a silent 'oh' that left Thatch a little lost again. Obviously he missed something in that last sentence that the younger brother heard.

"But you don't mind me staying, right?" Fire snaked out to singe his pants' leg. Thatch scrambled back a couple feet while shouting, "Okay, okay! Sorry! Um, just one more question and then I'll leave you guys alone, 'kay?"

The fire paused in its chase when Ace caught a shrug from Sabo. Luffy also gave him a curious mental nudge as he watched the commander swat the burned portion of his white pants.

Seeing the flame wasn't trying to burn his leg anymore, Thatch looked up and met the tri-colored eyes watching him. "I can? Great! I wanted to know why you guys didn't come down for lunch. You three had to have been hungry, right?"

Luffy turned to frown at his brothers. /( _Confused_ ) When did the _kýn'vráls_ say we could eat their food? /

/He didn't, Lu./ Sabo replied.

/But…/ Luffy shot a glance at the increasingly disconcerted-looking chef, who was wondering about what was going on with the silent brothers. /But he sounds like we should have been eating their food. So, why aren't we?/

Ace glowered at Thatch upon hearing that last question.

"We are perfectly capable of getting our _own_ food. We don't need any damn charity from the bastards who kidnapped us and took our crew!" Luffy swiftly cast a glance up as Ace's anger rose, flames dancing along his arms and shoulders. "Who knows? You assess might have poisoned it or something!"

"You _brat_! I would—"

"Ace, stop being mean." Thatch, cut off by Luffy's quiet command, was once again shocked by how quickly the kid diffused the tension of the older siblings. Luffy stopped staring at Thatch to turn and direct a serious look at Ace. "Pom-Pom is Good. He wouldn't do that or let anyone else do that. Right?"

"R-right. And my name isn't _Pom-Pom_ , Luffy. It's 'Thatch'," he answered. Luffy beamed at the man.

/See? He's Good!/

Ace scoffed at the man but remained quiet. Sabo and he knew that an upset and hungry Luffy made for a nasty headache. Sabo, giving up on fishing for the moment, reeled up the cable and set the steel pole down on the deck. Luffy scooted over to make room for the blond, coincidentally moving closer to Thatch as he did so.

The commander noticed this at the same time the older brothers did.

Sabo and Ace watched the man like overprotective hawks, waiting in case Thatch did try to do something now that Lu was basically saying he didn't mind the Human sitting closer to him. Not wanting to provoke the brothers or lose the trust the youngest was displaying, Thatch carefully sat up on cross-folded legs. To keep his hands in sight he placed them on the tops of his bent knees.

Luffy thought the smile on the Human's face didn't match the look in his eyes. It wasn't 'true', but it wasn't fake either. The man was hiding but not hiding; his words and actions sincere but carrying a hint of being cautiously planned. ' _Weird Human. Like those color-changing lizards._ '

"I thought you were going to _leave_ ," Ace growled. Yeah, he wasn't going to be dick to the chef (for now) at Luffy's request but that didn't mean he had to like the guy being around.

"Hahaha, yeah. I will don't worry," Thatch chuckled. "About the not coming to lunch… I get that you must be used to fending for yourselves—least, that's what it sounds like. But I wanted to say that you don't _have_ to do that while you're with us and Pops!" Luffy tilted his head slightly at that word. "Besides, I can't let my new brothers go hungry!"

That last bit, Thatch discovered, did _not_ go over very well. At all.

Sabo and Luffy stiffened. The blond narrowed his eyes while Lu side-glanced at Ace, waiting for his brother to blow. Thach began to sweat the moment Ace's head snapped to face him, a rumbling growl coming from his throat as fire burned behind grey eyes. Luffy sent a quick thought asking the older raven to please _not_ "really hurt the stupid Human".

" _I am not your 'brother'_ ," Ace ground out through clenched teeth, "and I will _never_ join you bastards! You assholes may have trapped me on this damn hunk of wood, but that means I get another chance to take that mustache-bastard's head!" Thatch was taken aback by the amount of fury and hatred in the teen's gaze and voice, so he was slow to react to the enraged fire shooting for him.

Rolling and scrambling away at the last second earned him a second pair of unsalvageable, singed pants and a burnt sleeve. Regaining his bearings and trying to shake off the surprise at how quickly the kid's temper had flared—' _Hahaha…"flared", 'cause he's fire!'_ —he missed a second branch of fire racing for him from around the side.

Sabo and Luffy caught a bright glow of blue and yellow and then Marco was there to shield his ship-brother from Ace's rage. A flaming azure wing brushed aside the attacking orange, quelling the freckled teen's fire before it would damage anything else.

"Do you not think before you speak, yoi?" Thatch chuckled as he stood up, dusting himself off and patting out the smoldering bits of cloth.

"Haha, thanks for the save, bro!"

"Just go before Ace tries to roast you again." Marco looked at the tense teens before him, seeing Luffy edge closer to Ace and Sabo while shooting a guarded look up at the phoenix. "The other two Portgas' might help, yoi."

"Eh?" Marco and Thatch turned their attention onto a very confused Luffy. Ace glanced at the younger from the corner of his eye as Lu asked him, "What's he talking about, Ace?"

Sabo sighed, relaxing as Luffy (true to form) snapped the cloud of hostility in half. The commanders just stared at the straw hatted kid, Thatch exchanging a baffled look with his blond brother.

"You're brothers, correct?" Ace's glare intensified, flames licking the tops of his shoulders again. A couple branches reaching out to brush an arm of his younger siblings. Sabo inclined his head and Luffy nodded with a thousand-watt smile. "So aren't you two Portgas D. Sabo and Portgas D. Luffy?" A secretive smile belied Sabo's hidden amusement and Luffy was frowning at the two Whitebeards.

"Yes, we are brothers but mine and Luffy's names differ from Ace's. Portgas D. Ace, Lazúl Sabo, Monkey D. Luffy," Sabo said, pointing to each of them. Ace scowled at his younger brother.

/( _Annoyed_ ) You didn't need to tell them our names./

/( _Calm Fine_ ) They're Good, Ace! It's okay./ Luffy giggled at his scowling big brother, before catching a glimpse of the stunned faces of the commanders. This made him really start laughing. "Shishishi! Pom-Pom and Pineapple look funny!" Marco's eye twitched at the nickname.

"Don't even start, 'Pom-Pom'." Thatch closed his mouth and shot an affronted look at Marco. The phoenix commander, lazy expression returned, eyed the three youths. First the stupid straw hat that bugged him with its familiarity, now a name too. ' _But_ that guy _doesn't have a son as far as we know so this kid couldn't be a grandson, yoi._ He _doesn't seem the type to adopt either._ '

"Are you sure you're brothers? Blood-related?" Ace directed a withering, molten-steel glare at the cook.

"Blood-related means we share blood, right Sabo?" Receiving a nod (hesitant in its delivery from the top hatted brother), Luffy brightly smiled at the commanders. "Yeah! We're blood-related!"

"Luffy…" Sabo gave a small nudge to Ace's mind. /That's not what they meant, Sabo. We don't want to confuse Lu over this./

/( _Fine Don'tcare Notmatter_ ) Does it honestly make a difference? ( _Amused_ ) I think Lu knows anyway. Not like he's wrong either with what he said./ Ace paused at Sabo's comment, thinking over Lu's question.

The dragon wasn't privy to what his brothers were saying to each other but he could sense the topic was about his statement. /( _Confused_ ) But we _have_ shared blood! I still do when you get too hurt and I want you to feel better. ( _Happy Proud_ ) So sharing blood means we're blood-related!/

Ace gave Luffy a warm smile as he and Sabo gave an affectionate brush of their bond. Lu's presence in the back of their mind's glowed at the touch.

Yeah, Ace had to give his brothers points for that one. Luffy was straight-forward and had a tendency to be very literal. Despite that, or perhaps because of it, he could find loopholes in or run circles around another person's argument. Sabo and Ace couldn't decide if their baby brother was conniving and manipulative or just that innocent and simple-minded about things. The vote usually swung like a pendulum between the two.

' _So they must be half-brothers, yoi_ ,' Marco thought.

Watching the teens after Thatch's question, the Whitebeard Pirate duo had the distinct impression that the three were holding a silent conversation. The Fourth Commander raised an eyebrow at the sudden shift in Ace's demeanor, watching the younger fire-user look at Luffy in a way that was reminiscent of what he'd seen earlier before breakfast. Marco studied the boys closer, wondering what had happened to make the previously sullen and prickly Ace glow like the sun.

Luffy suddenly sensed a familiar haziness edging Ace's mind. Giving a big yawn, he crawled over into his oldest brother's lap. "I want a nap," he mumbled, knocking the straw hat onto his back so he could snuggle his head into the crook of Ace's neck.

Ace relaxed and wrapped his arms around the dragon, no longer worried about his other secret being discovered. A small grin wormed its way onto the raven's features as he tilted the orange hat to better shade his face. Sabo immediately turned to the commanders to make them leave.

"If that is all, gentlemen? My little brother is still recovering. A restful nap under the sun sounds rather pleasant and would be beneficial for improving his health." The cool voice accompanied by a frosty blue gaze speared the older pirates.

Thatch swore he was going to get whiplash from how fast these kids' mood changed. Marco had expected the change but the speed and severity of the shift was still off-putting. One moment the brothers are warm and gentle with one another, the next finds them growling and defiant behind a wall of fire and ice.

Taking the hint that the conversation was over and they weren't wanted around, Marco nudged Thatch in the direction of the stairs. The cook grumbled but obeyed after casting another look at the younger pirates.

Right before he left as well, Marco looked over his shoulder and said, "After your nap, I can show you around the ship if you want, yoi." Sabo scooted over to lean against an unconscious Ace, placing a hand on Lu's shoulder. Both younger siblings quietly observed as the First Commander seemed to think something over. "Bay—the Head Nurse I told you about—has been looking for you three. I'll make sure she doesn't bother you, yoi." The two watched as Marco's arms turned to fiery blue wings which carried the older man back up to his perch in the crow's nest on the mizzen-mast.

Luffy had tensed when he heard about the nurse, but Pineapple-Chicken saying that he would help them avoid the Human put him at ease. Sabo was unhappy and suspicious about the offer, but his baby brother's acceptance kept him from outright denying it (like Ace would've had he been conscious). He would trust Lu's judgement just as he and Ace always did…on these things at least.

* * *

"I'm telling you there's something _off_ about them!" Vista looked down at the pouting feminine man.

"You've been saying that all morning, Izou. The small one—what's his name—told us they were brothers. Of course they're close." Izou shook his head, snapping his fan closed and tapping it against his chin.

Izou had been searching for the "brothers" to try and talk to them more, wanting to figure out something. Vista thought his brother just wanted to snoop more and collect some "juicy tidbits" about their "real relationship". They hadn't shown up at lunch and had been largely absent all day. Not surprising with how large the _Moby Dick_ was but still quite the feat. They were heading back up to the deck after hearing someone mention that Thatch had found them and reported the ex-Spades to be at the poop deck.

"There is no way they are truly brothers…at least, not all three of them." Izou tapped his folded fan thoughtfully against his hand. "Ace and Luffy could easily be brothers, but the blond I'm not so sure about."

"And why is that?" Izou glanced up at him like the answer should be blaringly obvious.

"He acts nothing like them! The two ravens are ill-mannered and uncouth in their actions and words. Sabo is more refined in his speech and actions and his appearance differs greatly from Luffy and Ace."

Vista had to give his brother points for that. His observation was very true, Sabo acted very differently from the older and younger raven pirates. Still, he remembered how both older teen s had looked when the youngest declared them to be his "big brothers".

' _They looked so proud. They obviously hold the small one's words as truth; there is no way someone could gaze at another the way they had and_ not _be doting siblings._ '

Izou seemed to interpret the trio differently. All day, since he had snuck after Thatch to go wake the Spade trio and returned with them, he'd been going on and on about how the three were not 'brothers' and instead had some other relationship. A more intimate one at that. While Vista did agree that the three brothers were oddly closer than he believed simple siblings to generally be, he didn't believe Izou's assumptions to be correct.

He said as much earlier to the Sixteenth Commander but the other just tittered and retold, again, what he had seen and heard before breakfast.

Opening the door that lead below at the base of the ship's helm, Vista and Izou stepped up into the late afternoon sun beaming down on the deck. The first thing the swordsman noticed were the wide-eyed stares his ship-brothers directed at the area behind the wheelhouse. He was about to comment on what had happened but a body suddenly slamming into the deck several feet in front of him (now spewing curses and flailing to right itself) distracted Vista. He caught Izou stopping his trek to the stern-deck to examine the very pissed individual trying to sit up.

"Ow! What the fuck was _that_ for, you bastard!?" Vista started when he realized it was _Ace_ sitting there on dented planks. The teen was holding his ribs and glaring accusingly, a puzzled and hurt expression marring his face, up at the top of the wooden structure behind the Fifth Division Commander.

"For ya being an ash-brained asshole of a brother!" His eyebrows rose in surprise at the language the familiar voice was using. Sabo sounded nothing like the cold, polite and calm youth portrayed when meeting Pops earlier.

"The hell are you talking about?" Ace's eyes widened comically and his face paled as he scrambled away from his current location, cursing under his breath as he fought to gain his feet.

The fire-user was able to get away in time to avoid a blue and gold object impacting the spot where the teen had landed moments prior.

"What do ya _think_ I'm talking about," Sabo growled—the swordsman commander finally recognizing the other teen from his voice and garb; the kid looked different without his top hat—as he pulled his gloved fist out of the splintered mess he'd made in the Adam's wood.

Seeing the glove, Vista off-handedly noticed that the pair was different from the one the blond had put on earlier. They were black and didn't look to be made of the same material as the brown leather ones he'd spotted when searching the teen yesterday. Vista couldn't get a clear view of them, but the black ones seemed to be more rigid and not of supple leather. Hearing Ace's confused tone pulled him back to the situation at hand, wondering what had Sabo riled enough to attack one he claimed to be brothers with.

"I don't _know_! That's why I'm asking, you dipsh—Fuck! Are you _trying_ to kill me!?" Ace narrowly avoided a second devastating punch, stumbling to the side and ducking around the enraged blond to come towards where Vista and Izou were standing. Turning back to face Sabo and putting his back to the wall of the structure several feet off to Vista's right, Ace yelled, "I'm still injured, too, ya know!"

Vista watched, too startled at the sudden violence and dark aura emanating from Sabo to intervene, as the other brother slowly extracted his fist from yet _another_ messy dent that sent splintered cracks spider-webbing several feet out in the ship's planking. Calmly turning to face his brother, Vista was taken aback by the raw emotion swirling in the blue irises which previously only held love and care when aimed at either Ace or Luffy. Anyone else had only received cool contempt or wary suspicion. Vista didn't think it would be possible for such _anger_ to radiate off the blond youth and have it aimed at one of said brothers.

"One, no I'm not," Sabo calmly replied, holding a gloved finger up. A second was raised as he said, "Two, ya've had worse and those meager 'injuries' you currently possess will be gone within a day or two at most. So that _pitiful_ excuse of an excuse is rendered invalid."

Vista glanced at Ace and saw that the dark-haired teen did indeed look better. Any dark bruising was faded to a dull yellow/green; healing scratches replaced what had been gashes and cuts. Though the teen was obviously still sore, Ace seemed to agree with the blond's statement as he straightened and scowled at the other.

Crossing his arms, Ace replied in a sulky tone, "So? Chest is still sore and your damn hits hurt! Besides, you still haven't explained why you woke up in such a grumpy-ass mood!" Flames flickered sporadically across the ex-captain's shoulders. "Who the fuck randomly _kicks_ their _brother_ and then tries to beat the shit out of them?"

"Because Ace was being stupid. And Sabo only kicked you onto the roof up here." Hearing the jovial voice, Vista looked up to see Luffy (wearing Sabo's top hat, his own likely dangling on his back) sitting and swinging his legs at the top of the wheelhouse. "Luffy's also curious about why Ace did something stupid," the younger raven said in slightly harder voice, glaring down at his older brother.

Vista didn't find the look nearly as hostile as the blond's. The smaller pirate appeared more confused and hurt by whatever Ace supposedly did rather than truly angry.

"A fucking _firewall_ , Ace?" The swordsman saw comprehension dawn on the fiery teen's face at Sabo's words. It was replaced by a look of stubbornness moments later as the kid's brother continued, "What the hell were ya _thinkin'_?"

Fire growing larger and creeping down his arms, Ace scowled and yelled back, "I was thinkin' of keeping you two safe! I was tryin' to protect you!" Apparently, those _were not_ the words Sabo wished to hear.

The fire teen had barely finished his sentence before Sabo growled and lunged at him. Ace yelped and jumped away to avoid the enraged blond's third strike (which broke through the wall and left a considerable hole this time).

" _Safe!?_ Lu almost burned himself tryin' ta get through _your_ fire!" Ace paled at Sabo's words, flames dying a little, and shot a glance up at the small kid. "I go' blisters from the heat trying ta _stop him_ from hurting himself! Then yer damnable flames chased us ta the beach!" Sabo clenched his fists as he glared at Ace, "Again, what the ever-living- _fuck_ was going through that lump o' charcoal ya claim ta be yer brain?"

The entire deck was eerily quiet as the Whitebeard Pirates watched the brothers' exchange. Vista noticed Pops quietly standing a ways back. He found it strange that Marco wasn't at his usual place at their father's side, though he did spot Thatch approaching the older man.

Fire ignited around clenched fists, flaring up and coating the freckled teen's arms. Red-faced, likely either in a mix of anger and frustration, Ace heatedly exclaimed, "You two were _supposed to retreat_ back to the fuckin' ship and let _me_ deal with Whitebeard!"

Sabo looked down at ground, curly golden locks of hair falling to cover his face as his whole body began to tremble. Vista watched as one of those stiff arms rose to grab at the pipe, which the commander just now noticed, resting on the blond's back.

"Leave?" Ace flinched at the softly spoken word, flush fading and fire receding. Sabo's hand twitched as it reached the pipe, falling empty back to his side and curling into a fist.

Though quiet, the small voice carried on the wind so almost everyone heard it. Vista, along with Ace, Pops, and several of his siblings, looked up to where the youngest of the trio was perched.

Luffy was shaking slightly, a strange light in the boy's gaze, as he asked in a pained voice, "Ace wanted us to _leave_? To be _alone_?" Vista paused hearing that.

He understood Ace's desire to protect his brothers from a strong enemy, which the teen had obviously perceived Pops to be at the time. But that word…it held more weight than it should from the straw hat child. ' _I can understand not wanting to leave a brother behind to fight alone, but Luffy says it like it's the end of the world._ '

Any residual fire gracing Ace's body snuffed out like ice water had been dumped on him. Tone dripping with reassurance and shaking his head back and forth, Ace rushed to explain, "No! Nonono, Lu! I'm sorry you thought that!" Ace glanced at Sabo, who stared back with a face of stone, before looking back up at the smaller raven with a pleading (Vista thought it bordered on _begging_ ) look.

Vista turned to look up at the boy as well. The straw hat child had gone still and was gazing back down at the elder brother with an unreadable expression, head cocked to the side. After several long seconds, a frown crossed Luffy's features just as Sabo let out a growl.

"Portgas. D. _Ace_." Vista shifted his focus back to a shaking Sabo, who finally lifted his head to direct a chilling, murderous glare at said brother. "You are a _goddamned, moronic imbecile_!" The blond immediately launched himself at Ace, fist raised in preparation of punching his brother.

" _I'm_ a moron!?" Dodging the attack, Ace pointed accusingly at his two brothers while shouting, "You're the fucking retards who tried to take on a ship full of _enemies_ who sail under a bastard claiming to be the _World's Strongest_!"

Vista watched as Ace defended against another flurry of attacks from the growling blond, fire coming to the teen's defense once again. Sabo made no move to use the pipe he carried, choosing to use fists and kicks against his brother's flame-enhanced defenses. He noted that though Ace would flare his flames in Sabo's face to distract his attacker, Sabo never showed signs of discomfort from the vicinity of the flames. He only squinted or shut his eyes at the brightness.

Turning to Izou, he raised an eyebrow and quietly asked, "Think they're not really brothers _now_?"

The Sixteenth Commander shot him a dull glare then huffed and rolled his eyes, silently telling the larger man his reluctant agreement. Sabo's incoherent cry of frustration had him turning back to watch the two brothers' fight.

"Sabo."

Vista saw Thatch and Whitebeard (plus several of his brothers) glance up at Luffy. Seeing _Thatch_ pale slightly had him turning curious dark eyes up as well. Out of the corner of his eye, Vista saw Ace deflect a hit from the blond and look up at the younger child.

The straw hat kid was clutching Sabo's top hat and glaring down at where his brothers were fighting. The dual-wielding swordsman didn't expect the amount of anger and hurt he saw in the small boy's eyes to be directed at one he'd been so adamant about defending/rescuing previously. Actually, he hadn't really expected Sabo to be so hostile and violent towards Ace either after what he'd seen yesterday.

"Am mad too. Can I help beat up Stupid Ace?" Vista frowned. Now that he'd seen a smile on the boy he decided the dark look Luffy currently wore didn't suit him.

"No, Lu. You're angry and tired. We both know your control's shit when like that. I'd rather prefer the ship ta remain in one piece seeing as we're miles from any island." Vista exchanged bemused looks with Izou.

' _Is Luffy really that strong?'_ He doubted it.

But he'd also noticed how Marco kept eyeing the kid during the meeting and never really took his eyes off the brat (the same could be said for the other two brothers but the first mate was especially wary of the youngest brat). It worried Vista how unsettled his blond brother was concerning Luffy, but he wasn't about to push the commander for answers just yet. Vista knew that Marco would explain things once he felt the time was right or his brothers needed to know.

"Fine. But Sabo has to punish Ace for me too!"

"What the hell, Lu!? Why are you so mad at your big brother?"

"Because Ace is a damn _IDIOT_ and Sabo won't let me fight!"

"Stop calling me an idiot! You're the rubber-brained idiot for trying to take on Whitebeard and his _entire fucking crew!_ " Vista winced when a stormy-eyed Sabo landed a powerful hit to the fire-user's jaw.

Ace flew several feet before landing and rolling for several more. The ex-captain was stopped by crashing into the foot of the mainmast, splintering the wood around the collision site. Sabo, blue eyes dark with his rage, stomped over to the darker-haired teen. Rubbing his jaw (and Vista wondered whether Sabo had somehow used haki since a bruise was already forming on the Logia-type's face) Ace watched the blond approach with an air of nervousness.

Grabbing Ace's shirt in both fists, Sabo lifted the teen up from the ground and brought him up to eye level. "Five hours," Sabo growled.

Vista couldn't see the blond's eyes or face but he could definitely sense the killing-intent rolling off the youth's shoulders.

Confusion colored Ace's red face and tone as he opened his mouth, "Wha—?"

Vista winced again when Ace's question was cut-off by Sabo slamming him into the large mast. The blond was holding his brother up even higher so Ace's feet couldn't even touch the ground.

In a chillingly cold voice, Sabo said, "After we found out you were captured, it took me _five fucking hours_ to calm Lu enough ta let him on the ship. Took a few more ta make it so he wouldn' bite anyone's heads off." Ace had stilled his struggling and the teen's face paled as all the blood seemed to drain from it. Vista watched as horror and grief filled Ace's eyes, the freckled teen's body going limp at Sabo's words. "Ya _know_ how he gets when someone threatens us. Why are ya so _fuckin' surprised_ we would come after you!?" Sabo let go of his brother and Ace slid boneless to the deck, gaze averted from the angry blond and focused on the ground.

Vista jumped a little when the tense atmosphere was broken by quiet chuckle. He and the other Whitebeard Pirates turned their eyes onto the giggling child wearing a top hat. Out of the corner of his eye, Vista saw Sabo tilt his head but didn't turn to look at Luffy.

"Shishishishi…Sabo?" Though Luffy had a bright smile on his face again, something about it seemed off to the Fifth Division Commander.

Said brother kept his gaze on the slumped figure before him. "Yeah, Lu?"

"Think we should remind Ace how much we love him?" Vista turned to watch the older pair of brothers when he heard a muffled sound of knuckles cracking.

Sabo had a dark smirk on his face as he turned away from the youngest brother, nodding silently as he finished cracking the knuckles of his other gloved hand. A sinister aura surrounded the blond teen. Vista saw Ace slowly turn his head to face Sabo. A weak smile wavered into existence as the orange hatted raven raised shaky hands in a form of silent surrender.

"S-Sabo… Let's not get carried away, alright? We need to set a good example for Lu as his older brothers, don't we?" Vista felt pity for the fiery teen well up in his chest at the hesitant and fearful voice Ace used.

Sabo only nodded and the swordsman could practically hear the dark smile in the blond's next words, "I concur, dearest older brother of mine." Ace relaxed a little but stiffened and began trying to subtly inch away when Sabo said, "Which is precisely why you should have no problem gracefully submitting to the following punishment Little Lu and I decided upon." With that Sabo lashed out at Ace.

Yelping, the fire-user's flames flared and swirled around his form, blocking Sabo's view of him. Ace jumped aside and put some distance between him and the blond. A growl rumbled from Sabo as he turned to face the apparently _older_ brother.

Hurtling after the raven, Sabo roared, " _Ace_! Get yer ass back here and take your punishment like a man, dammit!"

Ace, the swordsman swore the teen _squeaked_ when he saw the blond coming, defended with flaming arms against Sabo's renewed efforts of attacking him. Vista noted that Sabo was putting a lot of force into his hits, judging by the collateral damage caused by the attacks which missed Ace's body. ' _I guess we're a little lucky Sabo isn't using that pipe of his…_ '

"Fuck that! Your hits hurt and I'm still injured, you damned psycho," Ace cried, twisting to avoid a debilitating kick aimed at his head.

Vista saw that he wasn't the only who found it odd that Ace was putting so much attention towards seriously _avoiding_ being hit by Sabo; Izou was carefully tracking the brothers' movements just as he was. The Flare Flare Fruit was a Logia-type, so Ace shouldn't even have to worry about being hit as he could let the attacks phase right through him.

' _Unless Sabo is capable of Armament Haki, enabling him to hit Ace despite the kid being made of fire._ '

The Fifth Commander continued observing the ensuing fight (more like chase, Ace was either defending or trying to get away from Sabo) as the brothers ran about the ship's deck, leaving chaos and destruction in their wake. Vista felt sorry for the members of the sixth, ninth and eleventh divisions. They were the shipwrights of the Whitebeard Pirates and therefore the ones responsible for repairing and maintaining the _Moby Dick_. At the rate Sabo and Ace were going they would have a lot to fix later.

"I think our new brothers are going to fit right in!" Vista glanced to the side to see Thatch had come over to join him and Izou. He raised an eyebrow at the cook when he heard Luffy above them giggle as Ace swore and dodged a particularly powerful strike that splintered a barrel and part of the deck's planking on the opposite side of the ship.

"Here I was hoping for that Sabo to be a sensible one. He's just as violent and uncouth as Luffy and Ace are!" Thatch just stared at Izou.

"Of course. He may hide it but he _is_ their brother. Why wouldn't he act like them?"

To avoid another of their feminine brother's rants about his theories regarding the newest trio's relationship, Vista quickly briefed the pompadoured man.

* * *

Holding Sabo's precious hat on his head to keep the wind from taking it, Luffy sat atop the big wooden structure that housed the helm on the uppermost level. He was upset that Sabo wouldn't let him go and help teach Ace a lesson for the stunt he pulled on the island. Lu hated that, even years later with not a lot of contact with other Humans, his big brother _still_ had terrible issues about his "worth".

Sure, Ace wasn't as bad as he _had been_ when Lu first met him and they became brothers. Ace was much better now compared to then. But Sabo and he didn't know how to make Ace's dark thoughts go away for good and whenever those feelings crept up in Ace it made Luffy very sad. His big brothers were special and Ace should burn bright like the _ly'sólbi_.

Tuning back into his brothers' antics, Luffy watched as Sabo landed a couple hits that slipped through Ace's guard. He was ignoring their back n' forth comments but kept the connection open so that more private matters could be settled without the ship's resident Humans being aware.

Looking up and behind him, Luffy saw that Mango was sitting on the edge of the lookout. The dragon frowned. That Human-bird had given off the sense of wariness and uncertainty whenever he looked at Luffy. He'd noticed the other's analyzing eyes settle on him numerous times during the "talk" with these Humans' _kýn'vráls_ and when Luffy and his brothers were on the stern-deck fishing and napping. Lu's stomach growled but he ignored the thought of trying to catch the pineapple-turkey. Now that Sabo was letting out his frustration towards Ace, Luffy didn't want _any_ of that directed at him for trying to eat something he was told not to.

Voices below caught his attention and he angled his head to look down, scaring some of the individuals in the wheelhouse. Nobody's head should be capable of being even with their feet when sitting and bending over a ledge. Luffy only smiled and giggled at their gobsmacked expressions and wide, staring eyes behind the large windows before sitting back up. In a more normal fashion, he looked down to see Pom-Pom standing next Lady-Man and Mustache Sword-Guy. A barrel rolled over which Pom-Pom stopped and righted, setting it down behind him against the wall. He was telling Lady-Man and Sword-Guy about when he talked to Luffy, Sabo and Ace when they were fishing. Luffy cocked his head, examining the three.

While he liked Pom-Pom and trusted him somewhat, he didn't know much about the other two Humans. He could tell they were loyal to the Captain and didn't think they were necessarily Bad, but he was still hesitant about going near them and wasn't fond of them at the moment. _They_ were the ones who had taken Sabo from him (if only temporarily). But, if Luffy wanted to make sure this ship and the Humans on it were safe for his brothers to be around, he'd need to get a closer look anyway.

Plan decided, the straw hat boy pushed off roof's ledge and dropped down to the main-deck on the opposite side of the barrel from the cook. Landing lightly on his feet, making only a light tapping noise from his sandals hitting the wood (he wanted them to know he was there and not trying to be sneaky), Luffy hopped to sit cross-legged on the barrel. Here he wouldn't be in a vulnerable position on the ground and closer in height to the three pirates so they wouldn't look down on him so much. It was also a comfy seat that was away from the two unknown pirates Luffy didn't really like—placing the one smelling of spices with funny hair between him and the large swordsman and lady-like pirate. Yeah, he was a little closer to the cook-guy than he liked to be (only a few feet separating them) but the Human hadn't done anything earlier when Luffy got close so he decided to risk it.

Sword-Guy was looking up where Luffy had jumped from then back down to him while the dressy man who smelled of gunpowder stared at him. Pom-Pom turned and leaned against the wall, staying between the two other pirates and Luffy but letting them get a clear view of him. He'd unconsciously tensed his arms in case Pom-Pom tried to come closer but relaxed when Luffy realized the other was just getting comfortable.

"Heya Luffy! Need something?" Luffy looked between the smiling man with funny hair and the two he'd been talking to.

"I heard Pom-Pom talking and was bored," he replied. Crossing his arms and sulking he said, "Sabo won't let me help beat Ace up for being stupid."

The name seemed to annoy the cook and Luffy grinned when the large pirate with the big, dark mustache laughed and clapped a hand on the cook's shoulder. The pretty-dressed one opened a small fan and hid a light series of giggles behind it.

"Luffy~," the dragon turned back to Pom-Pom and saw the Human wearing a pleading face, "my name is _Thatch_ , not 'Pom-Pom'. Say it with me: Th-aa-ch. Thatch!"

"Poofy's easier," Luffy deadpanned. He laughed when Pom-Pom groaned and slumped against the wall.

Easing his tense muscles as he continued to sense zero hostility (wariness, yes, but he'd expected that), Luffy grinned brightly at the Commanders. Trying not to make it obvious, he continued to keep a sharp eye on the three Humans while silently evaluating them.

"Hey, kid—"

"Luffy." He frowned up at the large swordsman. These pirates knew his name and his brothers' names, so they should call him by that. Right?

"My apologies," the man tipped his hat and gave a nod of his head. He reminded Luffy of Sabo doing that, except his brother wasn't always sincere when he did it like this man was. "I am Vista, Fifth Division Commander and this is—"

"Izou, Sixteenth Division Commander," the pretty-dressed Human said. 'Vista' nodded and turned back to face Luffy.

"Thatch here was telling us about his talk he had with you and your brothers earlier." Lu looked between Sword-Guy and Pom-Pom. He turned a questioning gaze onto the mustachioed swordsman, silently asking what the man was trying to get at. Hearing a light huff from the dress-wearing pirate, he turned to look at him.

"Is it true that those two," the lady-like man pointed to where Sabo and Ace were scuffling across the deck, making several pirates jump out of the way of flames and flying fists and kicks, "are your brothers?"

Luffy beamed up at the three Commanders and proudly exclaimed, "Yeah! They're my big brothers!" He glanced at the pretty male, slightly puzzled as the other crossed their arms and gave Luffy a weird look. "Why?" When the Human didn't say anything and the Sword-Guy shot an uncertain glance at Poofy, an unpleasant thought came to mind. "You aren't going to try and take Sabo again, right? I won't let you take him away!"

Poofy stood up straight, raising his splayed hands and making 'shushing' sounds; thankfully, he didn't try to approach the unhappy dragon. Luffy was tense again and ready to attack if these Humans truly thought they could try to take one of his brothers. Seeing that the cook wasn't going to intrude in his space, Lu devoted most of his attention to the two pirates who had previously wronged him.

* * *

Vista saw how Thatch wasn't attempting to get closer to the upset boy and copied his brother's example.

"No, Luffy. We aren't going to try and separate you from your brothers. Promise." Luffy calmed a little at the words but still kept a wary gaze on the two pirates.

Thatch glanced back at his brothers but also relaxed once he saw Luffy doing the same. The commanders could tell the kid was still on edge but he didn't appear to be planning on trying to bite them like he had before.

Seeing how close Thatch was to the child, Izou tried to approach as well. Luffy caught the movement and growled. He still wasn't comfortable around Lady-Man and didn't appreciate the Human pushing into his personal space without invitation. Thatch, hearing the warning and seeing how the small body was prepped to attack again, spun around to find Izou pausing mid-step. Vista, noticing how the straw hatted boy reacted to Izou, made the smart decision to take a couple steps _back_.

"Izou! What are you _doing_? Get back before Luffy does something," Thatch hissed. When Izou shot him a stubborn look, the cook glared and made a harsh gesture for Izou to back off. Vista and Thatch let out a sigh when the geisha finally, and with great reluctance, moved to stand near Vista.

Luffy stopped growling when the stupid Human moved away, but kept his focus sharp and trained on every movement the three made. Thatch was a little disappointed to find he had to move an extra couple feet away from his previous spot when he tried to go back to it, only to be met with a brief growl. He understood the kid was upset from both being near people without his brothers to support and Izou's pressing him. At least he took some joy in knowing that the small raven trusted him enough to let him stay close.

"Sorry for upsetting you, Luffy," Vista said in a soothing tone. Or, what he hoped could be taken as soothing.

Luffy's gaze fixed on the large speaker, waiting to see if he'll continue. Sensing his brothers' worry tug at the back of his mind, he sent a reassuring pulse back to let them know he was fine. To distract them, he asked if he could try to join in too now. A resounding "no" from both had his lips twitch into a ghost of a smile.

Izou caught the brat's lips twitching and also noticed the background noise of Ace and Sabo's fight die down for a second. It picked back up when he saw Luffy almost smile and glint of amusement enter the brat's dark eyes.

"Why did you want to know if Sabo and Ace were my brothers?"

Izou started when he found those dark orbs boring into him. Vista raised an eyebrow at the child's tone; it was serious but also held a hint of curiosity. He also detected the undercurrent of what might be a threat under the words. Thatch heard the warning hidden in Luffy's voice as well and silently prayed neither of his brothers would do something to distress the kid further.

"I just found it odd how the blond, Sabo, didn't act like you or Ace." Luffy scrunched his brows at Izou's words.

"Why would Sabo act like us?" He tilted his head, staring at the dress-wearing Commander with confusion in his eyes. Izou fidgeted with his fan, thinking of how he might clarify the question.

"I believe what Izou is trying to say is that Sabo isn't like you or Ace even though you say you are brothers and he is curious as to why that is," Vista tried. The three commanders were dismayed to find the confusion swirling in the small pirate's eyes only increased.

"So?" Luffy didn't understand what these Humans were trying to get at. "We're brothers, but Sabo is Sabo. Why does being brothers mean Sabo should be like Ace or me? Sabo wouldn't be Sabo if he was like someone else." Thatch pointed and laughed at Vista and Izou's faces.

"Hahaha! He's got you there!" Izou grumbled and turned his head to track the older siblings' scuffle.

"I suppose you have a point there," Vista replied, using a couple fingers to play with one of the ends of his dark mustache.

"Okay then," Izou waited until he had Luffy's attention before continuing, "explain this morning." Vista sighed and Thatch's face turned red at the reminder.

"Hah? What about it?"

"Why were you, Sabo and Ace all sleeping together?" Luffy brightened at Izou's question, comprehension flashing in his eyes. Izou almost groaned as the brat's face descended back into a puzzled frown.

"Why wouldn't we?" These Humans were weird. It was official. "Are we not s'pposed to or something?"

"Well…" How was Thatch going to explain that one? Vista was looking a little shocked by the seriousness of the kid's question and Izou was getting that _look_ he'd had earlier back. "It's just… Um. Normally," Luffy stared at Pom-Pom as the man struggled to word his reply, "people _stop_ sleeping in the same bed as their siblings after a certain age."

"Especially almost completely _nude_ siblings," Izou added.

' _Oooh… This is one of those "human-equity" things Sabo and Ace talk about sometimes._ ' Luffy glanced between the three Commanders, taking in their varying expressions while trying to think of how to go about this conversation. ' _Well, not like Lady-Man and Sword-Guy are off the hook yet…_ '

Looking Izou right in the eye, Luffy said, "I like sleeping with my brothers and clothes get in the way sometimes."

Thatch choked on air at the straw hat wearer's words. Vista, blushing at what the child was implying and giving a little more credence to Izou's supposedly "unrealistic" theories, moved to pat his chef brother on the back. Izou stared, eyes wide with shock and disbelief, and swore his heart actually stopped for a second. Luffy smiled innocently at the Whitebeards, internally laughing at their reactions.

Not like he lied anyway. After a while, and several uncomfortable experiences, Luffy, Sabo and Ace just found it easier to sleep in minimal clothing.

A new set of footsteps coming towards them had Luffy glancing off to the side to see who it was. His eyes met the one who likely was closest to Ace and Sabo in age and was wearing that odd green shirt with puffy sleeves.

"What are you guys doing?"

Haruta had been curious about the sudden noise on-deck and went up to see what the cause was. Finding Ace and his blond brother fighting (though it looked more like Ace was trying to run away) to be the source, he'd turned to try and find Thatch. He'd thought up a great prank and wanted to share it with the cook. Looking around, he finally spotted Thatch standing near the base of the helm with Izou and Vista. Haruta was surprised to find the youngest of the brother trio was with them, too, and not over by his brothers. When he got closer, Haruta became curious as to why his older brothers looked like they had tried to drink Pops' strongest sake.

Drawing nearer the group, he asked, "What's wrong? Thatch finally make you guys eat an experiment that didn't agree with you?" Said man shot a scathing look at the youngest commander.

Well, what would have passed as a scathing look had he not been flushed and still trying to get his lungs working properly.

"Shishishi! I answered a question and their faces turned pretty colors!" Why did that smile and answer seem a little _too_ innocent to the Twelfth Commander?

"Say, your name's Luffy, right?" Lu nodded, smiling brightly.

"Yep! I'm gonna be Pirate King!"

"Suuure… Anyway, I hear you have a Devil Fruit power." Luffy stilled, dropping his smile to stare blankly at the new pirate. The older three commanders also became more attentive. "Is it true?"

Examining the smaller Commander, Lu weighed his options. He foggily remembered Mango saying he believed Luffy to be an ability-user last night. Sabo and Ace didn't want him to say _which_ Fruit he ate in case someone caught him partially-Shifted. ' _Never said I couldn't admit to having one…_ '

"Yeah, I ate a Fruit." He stuck his tongue out and scrunched his nose before saying, "It tasted gross! Never want to eat one again!"

"Really!? Which one was it? What kind of power did it give you? Wh—"

"Don't wanna say," Luffy commented, picking his nose before flicking a booger off his finger.

The surrounding commanders released a disappointed breath. Haruta visibly deflated at the younger pirates words.

"But why not? It's not like we'll do anything to you. We have many Devil Fruit users in our crew." Luffy shook his head then smiled.

"If I told you then it wouldn't be any fun!" Vista eyed the grinning boy.

"Fun?" A nod and another bright smile was his answer.

"So…it's a game?" Thatch asked.

"Yeah! If you guess it then you win! Oh, but you can only guess what Fruit I ate or what my ability is. None of those stupid yes/no questions. They're confusing." Luffy looked over to see his brothers were finally winding down. Maybe he could sneak a couple of his own hits in? Oh well, Ace asked for him to help locate the Captain so he could start some sort of plan. "Got to go! See ya!"

The four Whitebeard Pirates just stared after the boy as he vanished amongst the wandering pirates.

"Well," Vista, Izou and Thatch turned to a smiling Haruta, "what did I miss?"

* * *

"That's his ' _plan_ '? Are you serious, Lu?" Luffy hummed in response to his blond brother's whispered question.

After breaking up the fight with a couple of his own blows, Luffy and his brothers wandered back to their room only to find one of their traps had been set off. Deciding to find a safer place to sleep, they'd explored the ship while staying out of sight and hiding their presence. The brothers used Luffy's nose and instincts to find several hidden spots where they could have an easier time relaxing and letting down their guard. The only unfortunate thing about the hiding places was that none were large enough for Lu to comfortably Shift fully into his other form. It was upsetting but at least they had several places prepped and ready for Luffy to use if he wanted to sneak away and be in a hybrid form for a while.

With living arrangements settled, Ace had asked for Luffy's help in locating where Whitebeard's room was. Luffy was more than happy to help his brother but Sabo had stepped in to demand _how_ Ace expected Luffy to find the room while so many pirates were running about. Plus, "what would happen to us if you fail, idiot" was also brought into play. "I won't fail" and "worry about it when it happens" were obviously _not_ the answers to Sabo's question (the prize for losing being a swift punch to the tops of the ravens' heads courtesy of the blond brother).

When the pirates had gone in for dinner (Ace and Sabo promising that Luffy could go for a swim later that night to catch something for his own), Luffy stealthily hunted around for a clear scent trail that belonged to the Captain in question. He'd discovered that the scent was strongest in one of the rooms beneath the helm. The giant door was also a bit of a giveaway. Upon finding the Captain's room and sneaking away (Luffy discovering what Sabo called a "doghouse" outside of where the room was located, situated at the top of the stairs on the opposite side of the poop deck from where they'd been fishing) Sabo questioned Ace on what he was planning to do with the room's location.

Now, a couple hours after the sun set, Luffy and Sabo found themselves on the roof the wheelhouse and looking either up at the stars (Sabo) or down at the main-deck in the direction of the bow (Luffy). Ace had vanished inside a few minutes ago and the few people wandering the deck ("lookouts" Sabo had called them) had noticed the two teens on the roof.

"Sabooo…hungry."

"I know, I know. Just wait until Embers is done with his _plan_." / Then we'll help you go fishing./

"M'kay. Ne, Sabo?"

"What?" Luffy smirked.

Lifting and twisting his head to directly look at his brother, the action impossible for anyone _not_ made of rubber, the dragon chuckled as he asked, "Shishishi… How much you wanna bet he gives himself away?"

* * *

It had been a quiet night so far and Aaron, a member of the second division, was passing near the helm in his stroll about the deck. He was scheduled for an early night watch tonight and had only a couple hours to go before he could head down to his bunk.

The pirate paused when the barest sound of giggling travelled to him on a breeze. Looking around the deck he couldn't spot whoever made the noise. It certainly wasn't any of his brothers also patrolling the ship on watch. Aaron didn't think any of them capable of such a lighthearted and innocent sound. Plus, he'd only ever heard Commanders Haruta, Izou and Thatch _giggle_. None of the others would be caught dead making that kind of noise.

He was about to pass it off as trick of the wind when he heard the sound again, only this time it was followed by an equally quiet snickering. Frowning, Aaron tried to locate the source(s) of the noise. Hearing the same giggling a second time assured him it couldn't be any of his brothers. The one who had made it was too young, too. Which meant that it was probably one of those new brats Pops had picked up. The thought that one of them was floating around made him groan aloud.

Sure, they'd stayed hidden most of the day but Aaron (and several others he knew) were a little leery of the trio. Rumors floated around that the previous crew they sailed with had called the brats "monsters". He couldn't blame the old crew after seeing the way they acted yesterday and again today. What also unnerved him was overhearing a couple of the commanders (he thinks it was Blenheim and Rakuyo) mention that the brats were extremely difficult to locate even when using haki at times.

Now, one or two of the new brats was possibly nearby and Aaron was wary about what they could be up to. He went over to the starboard side of the ship to climb up and see if he could spot one of the brats from a higher vantage point. Ten feet up, he heard the barely audible snicker and giggle again.

' _Sounds like they're up high. But where?'_ The voices hadn't come from up in the rigging above him. They didn't come from the deck either. ' _Where…_ ' His eyes stopped on the roof of the helm.

Climbing another twentyish feet, Aaron could just make out two dark figures laying on the top of the wheelhouse and hanging over the front right corner. One figure appeared to be looking over the side down towards the stairs that led to the deck at the ship's stern. The other the front of the helm, likely the door that led inside to Pops' room and the Meeting Room. The door to the wheelhouse was on the portside and at the top of the stairs, so whoever these two were (again, Aaron is pretty sure they're part of the so-called "Monster Trio") probably weren't trying to get inside there. The only other door at the helm's front led down below and was a more direct route to the Commanders Quarters.

' _Wait…_ ' Aaron stared at the two shadows. ' _I heard that the brats never left each other's sides. If two are there, where is the…_ '

Freaking out over the implications of this situation—no, he hadn't been topside when Pops met with the three brats, but he'd heard all about the meeting from several of his brothers—Aaron was about to sound the alarm when something (kind of) unexpected happened.

There was a muffled war cry from inside the helm, from the Captain's Cabin if his hunch was correct. Immediately after, a flaming body burst through the starboard wall of the helm (yep, from where Pops' room was) that collided with the opposite wall at the bottom of the stairs. The two shadows on top the wheelhouse burst into gut-wrenching laughter as the still-aflame body slid from the dented sidewall to the deck. Movement at the top of the stairs revealed Rakuyo (who else had an animated, dog-like, spiked flail?).

"Bwahaha! I can't believe you, Ace! What kind of 'stealthy assassin' gives a _war cry_ before attacking?" One of the shadows shouted while rolling around on the roof. The other was making an odd, almost hissing laugh while hanging over the edge and pointing at 'Ace'.

The flaming one, Ace, moved around on the ground before chucking something at the shadow pointing and laughing at him. "Shut up, Lu!"

"Shishishi—Ow! What was that for!?" Aaron gaped in shock. Rubbing his eyes, he stared at the smaller shadow. When whatever Ace had thrown connected with the other's head it… Seriously? It almost looked like the figure's neck _stretched_ —not very much so Aaron _might've_ imagined it—back before the person leaned back down to complain at the fire-user. "Sabo's the one who spoke!"

"So did you, brat!"

"I didn't _say_ anything!"

"I could _hear_ you _thinking_ it!"

"That doesn't count!"

"Does too!"

"Does not!"

Aaron sweatdropped. ' _Are they seriously arguing over whether they know what the other is thinking?'_

At this point the other figure ('Sabo' according to 'Lu') got up and went over to the smaller one at the roof's edge. A kick sent the smaller body over the side with a yelp to land on Ace—Aaron worried for a second over the smaller brat's health because who _kicks_ a kid off a _forty-foot_ ledge onto a person who is on _fire!?_ —before Sabo leaned over and waggled a finger at the two boys.

"Ladies, ladies. You are both flowers of beauty, I assure you—"

"Dammit, Sabo! Get your ass down here so I can kick it! Luffy get off me!"

"But Luffy is hungry and we promised him food. So I would recommend you quit causing a scene, dear Ace, and help me fish."

Aaron saw that Rakuyo hadn't moved from his spot at the top of the stairs. The commander remained there for a couple minutes after the three teens left then walked down to the hole before stepping through into Pops' room.

In a daze, the second division member scaled down the ropes back to the deck. It was early but he headed for the bow where the doors that offered the shortest route to the division barracks were. His replacement for watch can take the rest of his shift.

* * *

The following several days were eventful for the residents of the _Moby Dick_. Both old and new. Several times the crew had to question either their Captain's sanity in allowing the ex-Spade Pirate brothers to stay on the ship or the sanity of the brothers. A few times (due to certain incidents) the Whitebeard Pirates had to even question their own.

It didn't help matters that the first day the ASL brothers woke up on the _Moby Dick_ set the tone for the average day the rest of the crew could expect to experience. The fact that _two_ of the brothers were D's—after Thatch shared their names and what Luffy said, the general consensus was that the three were half-brothers and shared the same mother—should have been warning enough about what the Whitebeards were in for. "Normalcy" seemed to avoid those bearing the initial 'D' like the plague.

Just one week of having Sabo, Ace, and Luffy onboard taught the Whitebeards many interesting, and a few unsettling, facts about the brothers.

This also included Ace's sudden spree of blitz-attacks intended to kill Captain Whitebeard. Since his first attempt on the night of the brothers' first day aboard, the fire-user made at least two to three attempts every day. While several crewmembers and commanders were pissed (Rakuyo was livid every time he witnessed or heard of another attempt) at the brat for trying to hurt their father-figure, some would either laugh or comment on Ace's stubbornness. By the end of the week, there was a betting pool to see when and how the little punk would strike next.

* * *

After Ace's second failure to kill the older captain the morning of Day 2, just after breakfast, Sabo had asked for that tour Marco had promised them the day prior. Marco's brow twitched at the younger blond's audacity to suggest he give a tour after what Ace had tried to do (both the night before and after breakfast). Luffy, finishing pulling Ace's body out of the newest dent in the helm's wall, dragged his protesting brother over to also ask (demand) for Pineapple-Head to show them around. The first mate _really_ wanted to refuse after hearing Ace snigger and seeing Sabo's laughter in the younger's blue eyes. Too bad for him, Pops had also supported the idea and requested he give the brats a tour.

Similar to the first time the blond had acted as the brothers' guide, Luffy was carried on Ace's back with Sabo keeping guard (Marco wasn't fooled by the supposed laxness in their bearing) of the trio's backs at Ace's right. Just like the first time, too, Ace had flames lightly twirled about his brothers' arms and shoulders.

At times through the tour, Marco had the nagging sensation that a conversation was being held without his knowledge. Trying to catch the three in the act didn't pan out very well. He would only see them exchange meaningful glances while gesturing at something or one would randomly answer an unspoken question another had been about to ask. Sometimes while Marco walked and pointed out different areas and rooms the three would remain silent as they looked about. It was at those moments the phoenix truly felt he was being left out of a silent discussion; especially when he caught how one of the teens' eyes would glow with amusement or mischief. Then there were the moments where the brothers would be discussing a topic and Marco was absolutely sure there was more to the conversations than what he was hearing aloud.

What surprised the blond commander was the sudden interest Ace and Sabo showed towards the ship's orlop deck where smaller boats and skiffs were kept. Pulley systems allowed the crew to open a set of doors to maneuver the vessels out over the water and lower them down to the sea several feet below. Luffy also showed interest, but it was comparable to mild curiosity. Ace wandered around (Marco noticed he never let Sabo out of sight or strayed more than ten to fifteen feet) with Luffy while Sabo asked about the workings of the mechanisms around them.

The only reason Marco marked the sudden attention for review later was because the only room all three showed interest in prior was the large training room. Before that Sabo had taken interest in the navigation room/wheelhouse and the library. Ace perked up when they toured the workshop rooms and shared a disconcerting amount of attention to the area the kitchen and galley were located with the youngest brother. Luffy, strangely, was curious about the lowest levels of the ship. Marco told them that only the shipwrights of the crew ever really ventured down there. The Phoenix-zoan didn't know what to make of the glint that appeared in all three brothers' eyes.

Of course, the fact the blond commander was also still puzzling over the unknown scent he had discovered in the brother's "bed" that first night they spent on the ship wasn't of much help either. Besides that, his inner Phoenix's behavior had him acting more wary and cautious (though Marco hid such feelings behind his usual lazy attitude) around the brothers. With Pops' permission, he made an effort towards keeping a close watch on Luffy whenever he could spare the time.

* * *

Lesson: Don't Call Luffy Stupid

It was well after lunchtime and some members of the Sixth Division were near the figurehead of the ship, swabbing the deck and repairing damage caused by a certain pair of brothers the day before. They hadn't even noticed said brothers and also the youngest one were sitting out on the white whale motif until they heard a startling question.

"Ne, Sabo. What's a 'pops'?"

The pirates had stopped their various chores, looked at each other as if to say "You heard that too?", then turned to face the direction of the speaker. Out on the figurehead sat a blond in a top hat with a blue tailed-coat and a yellow-shirted raven with an orange cowboy hat laying against his back. Between them was the owner of the previous question: the straw hat brat.

"Oi, kid!" All three brats turn to see they have an audience of ten pirates. The same pirate continues, "What do you mean by that?" The speaker's tone isn't mocking, just curious and confused.

"A 'pops' is a sound but also a bunch of sodas." The straw hatted kid cocks his head, brows furrowed as he tries to puzzle something out, and says, "I was wondering why you call Big Banana Mustache a soda."

One of the division members had seen the warning look in the older brothers' eyes and had been about to inform, gently, the youngest about his incorrect assumption. It was too bad none of the others were paying similar heed to Ace and Sabo.

Caught between trying to laugh and come to terms with Strawhat's apparent stupidity, there many gasps of "You for real?", "…can't be that stupid…", and "Idiot!" amongst the boisterous and mocking laughter. The one who had seen the silent warning in the older pair of the trio subtly scooted himself away from the area his ship-brothers were located. That dark aura _screamed_ terrible agony and he didn't want any part of it.

The pirate smoothly made his exit before the real screams started up. He silently debated whether or not he should pass on the lesson his brothers were being taught or let the rest of the family find out for themselves. A wave of heat from one of the fire-user's attacks decided things. He couldn't, in good conscience, let his home be destroyed via pissed brothers. Making a beeline for the galley, the pirate made the responsible choice of telling his other brothers to "never call the straw hatted kid stupid".

* * *

Ace, Sabo and Luffy were rarely seen apart that entire first week, too. When they even _were_ seen, that is. They had a knack for disappearing for random stretches of time, only to reappear in some corridor or in one of their haunts on the ship's top deck.

While it was somewhat expected and understood, given how the three wound up on the ship in the first place, the Whitebeard Pirates were still a little shocked by the clinginess their hopeful soon-to-be brothers exhibited. Blenheim swore he saw them visiting the bathroom several times together and asked his shipmates if they ever saw one of the brothers by themselves. The answer he always received was a resounding no. Aside from Day 1, when Sabo and Ace left Luffy alone to have their fight (nobody knew why Sabo hadn't used the metal pipe slung across his back during said fight either), none of the trio left each other's sides.

Marco was the first to notice that Luffy and Sabo would be off by themselves, usually on the roof the wheelhouse, whenever Ace was about to try for another assassination attempt on Pops. A couple times he'd look about while standing near Pops' chair or perched in a crow's nest and see the three brats. Marco would turn away for second and, when he looked back, the trio would be minus an Ace. Like clockwork, Ace would pop out of nowhere aiming a flaming fist or some other extremity/weapon at Whitebeard within the next minute or two. After Whitebeard batted the failed assassin-wannabe-teen away, Sabo and Luffy would go and retrieve their brother (one or both chuckling at the older's actions). It took several more attempts for Marco to realize that wherever Luffy and Sabo perched to wait for Ace they would have their brother in sight. He found this out after catching Luffy tense from the corner of his eye right before Ace jumped from behind a barrel and shot a 'Fire-Fist' at Pops.

Ace, Sabo and Luffy didn't spend more than a few hours at a time above deck so they were more often than not out of sight. None of the commanders or Whitebeard knew what to make of this. They didn't want to force the trio into anything (more than they already had, of course) but hiding away from most of the Whitebeard crew wasn't well-received.

For one, everyone was jumpy about where Ace would try to strike from next. Two, the brothers were still hostile—the older two mostly in that regard, Luffy generally carried an open air of curiosity tinged by wariness—towards new people and anyone who got too close (accidental or not) would get singed by a cranky Ace. Three, Bay had made it clear that lots of sunlight and fresh air would be good for Luffy if his condition was as bad as described. She prowled around for the boys, determined to give them a check-up whether they wanted it or not, but hadn't had much luck in finding them when she made the time to go looking.

Bay's words were what had Vista bringing up the topic about the odd behavior the brats showed; thus starting the crew's commanding officers on this line of thought to begin with.

Ace, Sabo and Luffy were usually only above-deck to fish (and Thatch continuously grumbled about getting the boys down to the galley for a "proper feeding") or for Ace to make one of his attempts. Occasionally, a crew member would spot them in some corner of the deck or even on the figurehead lounging. Closer inspection always revealed one of the trio to be alert and acting as guard for the two who were sleeping. (It was a fast lesson to learn that those times were definitely _not good_ to approach the brothers in hopes of making conversation; depending on who was acting as the guard and who was sleeping, either a cranky Sabo or Ace would wake to mete out brutal punishment for whoever disturbed the three).

Whitebeard was the one who first noticed that, no matter how much or how little time they spent out in the open, the trio would _always_ retreat below-deck an hour before sunset. If it weren't for the occasional night attack courtesy of Ace, none would have thought the three came back out until sunrise the next day. The main difference, according to those who actually caught a glimpse of the three at those times, was that Luffy never had his hat off when above deck at night and he always remained hidden in shadow (though the same could also be said for Sabo on that last part). Marco thought it might have something to do with the mystery Devil Fruit Luffy ate but he wasn't making much headway in that department either.

Mostly because, somehow, whenever the trio vanished it became close to impossible to locate them.

Sick, stressed, starving, and exhausted, they could hide their presence fairly well to avoid detection by most of the commanders and almost all the crew. It was quickly discovered that, when healthy, the brothers were _more_ than capable of evading those who tried to search for them. The only ones adept enough at using Observation Haki to find the brothers were Whitebeard and Marco.

Many of the crew (including all the commanders and captain) wondered how the ex-Spade Trio learned how to suppress and hide their haki. The three would sometimes allow one of the commanders or curious division members (though most of the crew avoided the trio or worked around them due to how unapproachable the brothers portrayed themselves) near for a brief or meaningless conversation. Ace would only grunt or ignore the person, so it was either Sabo with his coolly polite and distant speech or Luffy's odd rambling that the Whitebeard Pirate had to contend with.

Any personal questions directed at the brothers during these sparse talks were ignored or shot down. Stubborn pirates who didn't take the hint to leave a topic alone suffered from a mix of: mild burns, singed/burnt clothing, flaming hair, or removal of facial hair via fire.

It got to the point where only Marco or Thatch seemed moderately tolerated by the touchy brothers. Atmos and most of the other commanders would observe the brats from a distance (Ace's assassination attempts really didn't sit well with them), so it was no surprise to find that, generally, only the First or Fourth Commander endeavored to locate the trio on a regular basis.

* * *

On the fourth day of the ASL trio's stay, Thatch had been wandering about the ship searching for the brothers in an effort to try and convince them to come to the galley for lunch. So far, he'd been snubbed at every previous meal offer made the past few days. The cook had seen how much the trio could easily eat that first morning and the knowledge that two of the brothers were D's let him know that amount was probably nothing to them.

This was reinforced after Sabo and Ace caught a couple giant fish yesterday and left most of the catch for Luffy to eat. He ignored rumors of the older pair giving the youngest the bones left behind from their share of the meal. Seriously, who would even bother to _eat_ fish bones? Or any bones? Use them to make wonderful soup stock, sure! Eat them…just plain bones with nothing on them…Thatch needed to remind his ship-brothers not spread stupid rumors like that.

Vista, seeing Thatch walking around with a frustrated expression on his normally happy face, had gone over to see what was troubling the man. The swordsman already had an idea that it was related to the crew's potential new recruits (the Head Chef's recent self-assigned mission wasn't by any means a secret) so he wasn't surprised to find a bag slung over the other's shoulder when Vista confronted him. The smell alone let the Fifth Division Commander know the contents were obviously of the edible variety.

"Need help?" Thatch perked up seeing Vista approaching him.

"Yeah! Have you seen the ASL Trio?" The larger dual-swordsman raised an eyebrow when he saw the cook look behind a stack of barrels.

"Not recently. And why are you referring to them by that?"

Passing his brother to peek around another set of barrels, Thatch answered, "Because that's who they are." He turned to face the other commander when he heard Vista make a disbelieving grunt. "What?"

"You can't call them by the name of some group of kids you heard rumors about. I think they would be offended if they knew the other names you said that group also went by." Thatch shot his brother a pout.

"B-but Ace's tattoo and the kids' crew calling them 'Monster Trio'—"

"Could be nothing more than coincidence," Vista stated. Thatch bit back any other argument he had at the look Vista gave him. "Anyway, Marco is busy with paperwork and doesn't want to be disturbed short of being brought lunch or there's an emergency. Have you checked the stern?"

Thatch grumbled about "unhelpful turkeys" but nodded to Vista's question. "They weren't back there and I also checked the top of the helm. Nothing."

Looking over at the figurehead where he'd seen the brothers lounging on occasion showed that spot to be empty as well. ' _Why two Devil Fruit users would choose to sit where they could fall into the ocean if they aren't careful, I have no idea._ ' Turning back to Thatch, he said, "I assume you've also checked below for them?"

"Yep," the Fourth agreed, popping the 'p' at the end of the word as he continued to look around. "Didn't find any trace of them though, like usual. Those three could almost pass as ghosts. Hey! Ace could be the 'vengeful spirit'!" Vista chuckled at the cook's outburst.

"Perhaps they are in hiding again?"

"Nah. Used Observation Haki and dimly sensed they were up here… Somewhere." Vista frowned as he, too, tried to sense for the three brothers.

He was a little surprised to find that they were above deck. Vista hadn't noticed them before then and he'd been up here since after breakfast doing training exercises. What he found odd was that, though he _could_ sense their presence nearby, the feeling was muted to the point that he couldn't use his level of Observation to immediately locate the trio.

"I see now where you are having trouble." Ignoring Thatch's aggravated sigh, Vista made his way to the wheelhouse.

"Hey, where you going? Aren't you gonna help your dear brother help our 'soon-to-be little brothers'?"

"That is why I am going to go ask those at the helm if they have seen the three pirates in question." Thatch paused in his pursuit of Vista.

' _Oh, that makes sense. Why didn't I think to do that?'_

Thatch caught a lucky break in his "quest" (yes, he was referring to his "mission" as a "quest" now because finding Ace and his brothers was a challenge worthy of the distinction) and one of the first division members reported they'd seen one of the teens climbing the foremast an hour ago. Vista thanked them and followed a determined Thatch over to the base of said mast.

Since they didn't see any sign of the brothers—though their presence was certainly stronger now that the commanders were closer, signaling they were still there at least—Vista and Thatch believed Ace, Sabo and Luffy were most likely in one of the two crow's nests. Probably the lower one; only one person could safely fit in the topmost crow's nest of either the fore- or mizzen-mast.

Thatch went to start climbing but Vista laid a hand on the chef's shoulder to stop him. Groaning in dismay at being stalled, Thatch asked why his brother had stopped him. Vista commented on how the boy's seemed to prefer their privacy and reminded Thatch that they also didn't enjoy being cornered. The cook started at the Fifth's comment and a chagrined look etched itself onto his features. In his haste to confront the trio Thatch had forgotten that tidbit, and climbing up to the crow's nest would be cutting off the trio's possible escape routes.

Turning back to the base of the mast before him, Thatch stepped forward and gave the wooden beam a couple hard raps with his fist. Vista raised a brow in silent question of the action.

"So they know I'm here." Vista gestured for gestured for his brother to continue with a deeper explanation. Rubbing the nape of his neck, Thatch looked up as he went on, "Ace, Sabo and Luffy are usually atop the wheelhouse or at the stern and positioned so they can see both sets of stairs. Never noticed how tense they were whenever I went to try and chat with them until I stumbled while carrying a tray of food when a wave hit. Started cursin' 'cause I almost dumped the food. Wasn't until I sat down that I noticed they weren't as stiff or guarded like the other times I'd gone to see them." Vista glanced up when he sensed the three presences above grow a little stronger.

Fingering his mustache in thought, he mused, "You think it's because of the noise you made…" Thatch 'hummed' to confirm his brother's guess.

"It was before they disappeared for the night and I wanted to try it again to see if the same thing happened. Unfortunately, I couldn't try it out until now."

"Pom-Pom! Ne, Sabo, Ace! Wake up! Pom-Pom's brought food!" Vista chuckled when he heard Luffy's nickname for Thatch. Said cook's eye twitched at being called by that stupid moniker. "Oh… Mini-Big-Mustache-Guy's with him." This time it was Thatch snickering at a now scowling Vista.

Smothering his snickers, Thatch beamed up at the three visible heads and held his large bag up for them to see. "I brought you three a snack. Figured you might be hungry." Luffy gave a thousand-watt smile and made to climb out of the lower lookout basket.

Both commanders donned perplexed expressions when the straw hatted kid's smile turned to a concerned frown as he paused in exiting the crow's nest. Luffy may have been fifty or so feet up, but the larger swordsman had a suspicion that the kid's focus was on him.

Guessing at what the problem might be, Vista called up, "Don't worry, Luffy. I promise I won't do anything to your brothers."

The kid had been tense and wary when he first talked with Vista, but the commander figured most of it was because of recent events. Perhaps having his brothers nearby and putting a few days of space between then and now will help the kid relax.

Thatch smiled again when Luffy resumed his descent after a few more seconds of staring at the Fifth Commander. It was unfortunate for the commanders that Luffy's method of getting down involved swinging and leaping about the rigging.

Thatch's heart was in his throat watching the kid (who was grinning and _laughing_ ) jump around _fifty feet in the damn air_. Vista tensed at the display and then both grew pale—Thatch thinking he was about to choke on the heart lodged in his throat—when Sabo and Ace copied their little brother. Neither commander breathed easy until the brothers finally landed lightly a few paces before them…after dropping straight down for the last twenty feet to the deck.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Thatch asked, "Could you not have come down the _normal_ way?"

In an impressive feat of synchronicity, Sabo, Luffy and Ace tilted their heads to the left and voiced a curious, "Why?" Luffy continued with a giggled, "It's fun~!"

"But you could have been _hurt_ ," Thatch pressed. Vista nor Thatch knew what to make of the odd look the trio gave them after hearing that.

The moment was broken when Luffy's stomach growled.

"FOOD," Luffy shouted, throwing his fists into the air. Drooling, energetic child eyed the bag Thatch was still holding, darting glances between the cook, Vista and food sack. Sabo had a hand on the small raven's shoulder. It didn't escape Vista's notice that Luffy was more wary of him than Thatch; the kid's gaze landing on him more than Thatch or the food.

Thatch saw it, too. The last few times he'd tried talking to the brothers he brought food along (everyone knows D's are suckers for food) in hopes of getting them to relax more around him. When he had previously talked with them—more like _at_ , but Sabo had begun adding comments to whatever Thatch randomly brought up so the man counted that as progress—Luffy had jumped up and promptly snatched the food from him before returning to his spot by the older brothers. Instead of holding him back, Thatch believed Sabo was offering Luffy comfort through the contact. Seeing none of the crewmembers had lingered when the trio came down, thus freeing the area, Thatch asked if the brothers wanted to eat by the figurehead.

Following an excited Luffy over to the guardrail separating the raised deck at the prow from the figurehead, Vista lagged behind a few steps to watch how his brother interacted with the trio.

Though Pops had tried to encourage his children to talk with the boys, it became clear the task was one of those 'easier said than done' deals. Ace, Sabo and Luffy had created a very unapproachable front that everyone had trouble overcoming and Ace's attacks on Pops didn't help matters. Namur, while put off by the fire-user's actions, was almost as wary about Luffy and his mystery abilities as Marco. The fishman had tried explaining it to Pops and the other commanders but always seemed to get stuck, eventually settling on what amounted to "my instincts say he's dangerous".

Vista watched as, in a practiced routine, Thatch took off his twin-blades and set them down (several feet away) before strolling over to where the brothers were perched on the railing. The cook plopped himself down a few feet from the boys, sitting cross-legged facing them with his back to the ship, and placed the sack of food between them. Pulling a few fruits and a couple sandwiches out, setting them next to him, Thatch pushed the bag closer to the brothers. Luffy quickly grabbed the canvas, hauled it closer and began pawing through the contents. Thatch began eating and started up a story about an island he'd been to while Sabo and Ace took whatever Luffy handed them (though Vista saw how the kid seemed to hoard a majority for himself).

He stayed back and continued observing the pompadoured chef and tense brothers. When he spotted Sabo watching him from the corner of a blue eye for the third time in a handful of minutes, Vista decided to sit down and listen to Thatch's rambling several yards away. The swordsman was pleased to see the tension in the blond's shoulders ease up from the action.

A smiling Vista leaned back against his section of the rail, ready to listen to Thatch's story, when his senses registered an object speeding towards him. Raising a hand to catch whatever had been aimed at his face, the swordsman was surprised when his gloved hand caught something soft. Turning to see what had been thrown, he laid eyes on a wrapped sandwich. Looking over at the four pirates, he saw Thatch looking back n' forth from Luffy to him and Strawhat's brothers staring down at the kid sitting and eating between them.

"Ummm…Guess that means you can join us?" Thatch side-glanced at Ace and Sabo for confirmation. They stared at Luffy for several more silent seconds (Luffy seemed to be more focused on the food than the elder pair's questioning gazes) before Ace huffed and Sabo shrugged his shoulders.

Vista accepted the smallest pirate's implied invitation and got to his feet. Copying Thatch, and aware of the blond and raven teens' staring, he undid the belt holding his swords, placed them next to his brother's pair, then walked over to where Thatch sat with his 'invitation-sandwich'. The cook quickly motioned for the Fifth Commander to sit when Luffy showed signs of tensing the moment Vista was eight feet away from where Sabo sat. Ace was glaring at Vista while Sabo followed his every move with a blank face. Luffy alternated rooting around for another bite of food and watching the older man with wary curiosity. Thatch just watched with baited breath, hoping Ace or Sabo didn't go against Luffy's silent request.

Once seated, Vista lifted the hand holding his sandwich and with a bow of his head to the small child, warmly said, "Thank you for the sandwich and for letting me join you four, Luffy." The smaller raven pulled his straw hat onto his head and smiled brightly at the commanders, letting out a happy laugh.

"Shishishi! Better together!" The two commanders _thought_ the kid was talking about the food. Seeing the older brothers twist to look at the grinning Luffy with wide eyes that quickly clouded with warmth and affection had the older pirates re-thinking the youngest's words.

Once all the food was gone, and Thatch pissed Ace off by making a comment about joining the crew, Sabo, Ace and Luffy disappeared below-deck.

"Are they always like that?" Thatch shrugged.

"When he stops with the moody glare, Ace either ignores me, dozes off, or fishes. If he _does_ say anything, it's a nasty snark at me, the crew, or Pops. Luffy usually asks more questions. Sabo…is about the same. He only started talking to me within the last two times I met with them." Vista shifted to lean against the rail where the trio had previously sat. The mustachioed swordsman smirked as Thatch patted out the last of the small flames and began lamenting the loss of another set of clothing.

"I'm guessing the rumors of Ace always trying to roast you whenever he lays eyes on you is because of how these chats end?" Thatch shot pouty scowl at his brother. "Gahahaha! You're lucky he hasn't set your hair on fire yet!" The cook paled as both hands flew up to gently clutch his precious hair.

"That's not funny, Vista! He sent several guys with missing eyebrows and hair to the med bay a few days ago!" Thatch quieted when he caught the thoughtful and distant look on Vista's face. "What's up?"

"Hmmm… Just wondering why they let you be closer to them than Marco." The Fourth Commander glance at his brother, confusion written on his face.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Marco sometimes talks to them. I've caught them chatting in the early morning out here on the figurehead before. He can't get any closer than two yards. How'd you manage three feet?" Thatch stared at Vista in shock before averting his gaze to the ruined pair of pants he wore.

How did he manage to get closer to them than their oldest brother? Marco was the one to calm them down that first night and get them to stay. They showed trust in the blue fire-chicken first. It had been _Marco_ who convinced Ace, Sabo and Luffy to give him a chance and they trusted the pineapple-head enough to listen.

Thatch knew the First Commander would make time to go and try to talk with the brothers, see how they were doing. He _didn't_ know that the brothers—rather _Luffy_ , because Thatch recognized it was more than simple protectiveness on Sabo and Ace's part—hadn't allowed Marco to advance beyond the boundary set that first night. While the chef felt that bringing food had helped smooth things over, he knew the brothers to be too cautious for that to have done the trick alone. It had been tough battle to get them (mostly Ace, but if he didn't agree then neither did the other two) to accept the food the first time he brought it. Thinking over his interactions with them, he had difficulty pointing to the exact when and how of his getting close with the brothers.

"Ya know, Visty… I honestly don't know." Vista grew concerned when a distraught look came over Thatch, only to start chuckling when his brother cried out, "Damn! I forgot about making them come to the galley for a real meal!"

* * *

With a low, tired groan Marco set his pen down and leaned back in his desk chair, head resting against the back with his face tilted up at ceiling. Dragging a hand down his face, Marco scowled as he looked down his nose at the papers covering his desk. Why did pirates— _pirates_ —have to do so much damn paperwork? He probably had more than Pops in monthly paper weight.

Writing reports for his division and the Second (he really needs to find someone for that position). Reports he had to go over from the other divisions. Supply requests from the crew's shipwrights. Reports on current food stocks and grocery lists for when they stopped at the next port (or got someone to make a grocery run to/from an allied island). Bay's reports and supply lists from the infirmary. Rejecting or approving requests from individual crewmembers or complaints/problems they bring up (when they bothered to write anything down or fill out a form like they're _supposed to_ , but Marco is usually stuck with that in their stead). Approving and monitoring current navigation plans and course changes. Scheduling watch hours and chores… Some of it went to the captain for a final check or approval but most was the first mate, Marco's, responsibility.

It kept him busy until the late hours of the night most days.

When he chose to take a break from the ruthless paper mountains he would either go for a short, relaxing flight or sit by Pops on the deck. With the recent additions on the ship, Marco now found himself seeking out their potential new brothers. One, he was curious about them. Two, to check on how they were doing. Three, to keep Bay away if he saw her trying to sneak up on them.

That damn woman was bound and determined to force Ace, Sabo and Luffy into her domain for a complete physical at the first opportunity. Ace and Sabo had tried to hide it when he first mentioned the prospect of a visit to the medical bay, but Marco wasn't First Mate or First Division Commander for nothing. Just mentioning the idea had Luffy going stiff and paling slightly, a fine tremble working through the small kid's thin body. The older brothers were little better. He hoped that the boys' trust issues (a whole other Sea King that needed to be addressed) didn't stem from a possible negative experience with doctors, but they could certainly be related. Seeing how Luffy reacted to Thatch touching him and still growled at anyone who got too close (Ace's fire singeing the offenders), Marco worried about how the straw hat kid would take being confronted by a determined Bay.

' _Probably bite her after she ignores his growling, yoi. Ace will try to light Bay on fire. Sabo…_ ' Marco's thoughts trailed off as he tried to think of how the blond of the trio would act.

From the few chats he'd had with the brothers over the last several days and observing the boys at a distance—to keep an eye on them and to stop any hazardous situations from occurring, such as Thatch's when he first talked to the brothers—Marco had developed a better grasp of their personalities. The rumors his siblings spread about the ship of the trio (not all of which the phoenix believed) and things the other commanders mentioned helped to support some of his findings.

Ace was a hothead. Also stubborn (it was the late morning of Day 6 having the brothers aboard and Ace was already up to 'Assassination Attempt #15' last Marco heard) and moody. He rarely spoke to anyone aside from Sabo or Luffy, though, when he did, it was only to deliver a spiteful comment. Brat was also more than ready to torch those who ticked him off; Bay had complained, couple or so days ago, about treating several crewmates for mild burns and missing facial hair (laughing as she recounted how one sibling had half the hair on his head completely burnt off).

By contrast, Luffy was very open and friendly (or, at least, _friendlier_ ). Like the older brothers he was guarded around others and wary, closed off and cautious. When speaking one on one—ignoring the presence of Ace and Sabo—Marco found the boy very cheerful and lighthearted. While Strawhat's wariness never abated, Luffy let down his walls to show more open interest and curiosity. Kid had some whip-like mood swings though. Happy, laughing and smiling one second, upset, defensive and growling in another. The First Commander noticed these swings tended to occur when someone hinted or implied something negative related to the kid's brothers or had gotten too close or moved too fast near him. Marco was just thankful that all of the commanders and at least some of the division members paid attention to his warnings about how to act around Luffy, else Bay would be getting even more patients with burns. (He ignored how such a thing might happen anyway once the boys stopped secreting themselves away for several hours at a time and actually interacted more with the crew).

Sabo was different than either of the other two. Any time Marco saw him, or someone tried to talk to them, Sabo remained distant. He would occasionally participate in a conversation, but the blond's tone was always cool or cold at best and his speech extremely polite. It also irritated Marco that he could never tell what the brat was thinking. Ace was simple to read and Luffy usually displayed how he felt very openly. Sabo, however, kept up a mask whenever someone came close and hid his inner thoughts and feelings from view. Kid had a poker-face that rivalled Marco's own and the phoenix only ever saw the mask slip whenever Luffy did or said something that caught Sabo's attention. Amongst the brothers, Marco pegged Sabo to be the calculating one who carefully thought things over before acting.

' _Sabo would probably leave Bay to Ace and stay close to Luffy, yoi._ ' It didn't escape notice that whenever the three moved from a chosen spot to below-deck, or vice-versa, Luffy was always put in the middle of the older brothers. Since Ace led, with Luffy on his back or right next to him, Sabo took the job of rear guard. Offense and defense. If that remained true in a fight then Sabo had the task of watching/protecting Luffy.

Turning to look out the window at the blue sky, the Phoenix-zoan thought it was time for another break. Maybe go down to the galley and grab another cup of coffee; his first one was long gone and he was still tired. Staying up late to do paperwork (though he _had_ gone to bed early last night, Marco was woken up by yet another midnight attempt on Whitebeard's life) only to get up early (he had the easiest time locating the three brats then, usually at the figurehead) was wearing on the commander. Giving the sky outside a longing look, deciding a flight was in order after coffee, Marco began organizing the clutter on his desk so he wouldn't have to deal with it later.

Stacking the papers together based on type and division, he paused when he saw how many were thrown in the "complaint box" Haruta had made as a joke. Marco never really read them, seeing as they were just pieces of parchment his family wrote stupid things on to annoy him. Any stupid or unreasonable requests his siblings made (again, without filling out the proper forms) were also tossed in the damn box for Marco throw away later. What caught his eye was the increased _quantity_ of "complaints" in the box to start with. Sure, there would always be a few, but never this many. The box was almost full.

Intrigued, Marco gave a 'what the hell' shrug and dug through it to see if there was a cause or, more likely, Thatch had decided on a new route to annoying the First Commander. In all honesty, he _did not_ expect the answer he received. Or perhaps, 'answers'.

For some reason, several of the crew had developed the wild notion that the _Moby Dick_ had spontaneously become haunted. _Haunted!_

Notes about sounds with no visible source, though some admitted to not investigating, were heard at random times (most commonly at night). Shadows that moved. A couple mentioned a glimpse of glowing eyes staring at them out of the darkness, disappearing when the note-maker blinked. Items vanishing and either reappearing elsewhere or never seen again. Doors to rooms closing but nobody found inside. More notes about odd sounds, only from the ceiling or walls instead of just in the halls/rooms. He found three that talked about floating orbs which would fade on the spot or move out of sight before disappearing. Feelings of being watched…

Any notes not about the alleged "haunting" of the _Moby_ were about the brothers. A few mentioned Ace toasting somebody. One questioned the health risks of the older brothers letting Luffy eat bones; Marco figured that one was related to the rumor about Ace giving Luffy a large fish bone and the younger eating it. The scraps he paid the most attention to were the ones about Luffy, hoping to get a clue about the brat's Devil Fruit and abilities (Haruta mentioned a betting pool devoted to the subject). A couple individuals swore they saw the kid's head twist completely around. Some that believed Luffy bent a limb in a way that would normally break it but showed no pain and was fine. Another said they thought the brat's neck stretched when Ace threw a shoe at Luffy (it also mentioned it was dark out and hard to tell exactly what happened). One person wrote that they thought Luffy had broken his neck because of the odd angle he had it at. Several mentioned how the brat's growling made him sound like an animal and was unnerving. A cluster of notes commenting about "Strawhat eating a fish whole"… Did they mean 'swallow'?

Interesting, but nothing that gave a real hint to Luffy's Devil Fruit abilities. He knew the brothers didn't like people being close so most of those scraps about possible broken bones or odd physical feats could be attributed to misperception. Or the kid was really flexible. Still, Marco opened a drawer and withdrew one of his notepads, flipping it open to the pages where he'd begun listing what was known of Luffy's powers/abilities. A meager list at best, most of the information based on what was seen when Sabo and Luffy came to retrieve Ace.

After jotting down the newest speculations and putting the notepad back in the drawer, Marco scooped the paper scraps back into the box before setting it down on the floor by the desk. It was time for that coffee and maybe a visit to Thatch once he was done flying. His brother might've learned something new about the trio.

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks for reading and, again, sorry for the wait! Stick around for new terms and a funny story that happened while I was out shrimping. We'll see more from ASL's side next chapter, don't worry! Wanted to get first week of anti-social ASL done so I could move onto the fun week where they start interacting more with the crew. We'll also get a closer look at why the Whitebeard crew are spreading rumors of a possible haunting (saw a slew of ghost movies and couldn't resist).**

 **P.S. If it wasn't obvious earlier I would just like to announce, for the record, that I AM NOT A SAILOR! For those who are more knowledgeable about sailing terms and/or the design of the _Moby Dick_ feel free to PM me about possible corrections to any terms I use.**

 **And a "poop deck" is the rear-most deck of a ship and is the roof of the cabins located at the stern-most end of a ship. I am debating either switching uses between the terms "poop deck" and "stern deck", though I think from here out I'll call it the "stern" or "stern deck". Mostly because there are immature individuals who will only review to comment on the word 'poop' and I don't want to deal with that.**

 **Shrimping Tales: So going shrimping involves me, my dad, a couple of Dad's buds, and sometimes some of my friends and/or their friends. This time it was just me, Dad, sister's boyfriend, and two of said bf's friends. For the sake of this story (and to keep their anonymity) we'll call Mr. Boyfriend "BF" and his two friends "C" and "T". I still can't walk (got upgraded to practicing walking so long as boot is on though, YAY) so I am in the boat's cabin driving and managing navigation and placement of the shrimp pots. Dad has BF, C, and T in charge of baiting (cuz the bait stinks to high hell so if we can pass the grunt-work onto the grunts kudos to us), while Dad checks to make sure the pots' ropes and bindings are secure before tossing them over the side when I give him the "go". BF, C, and T are good workers and enjoy learning how to properly shrimp (their previous methods were worthy of greenhorn idiots) so me and Dad show them the ropes and proper techniques. They've all had a few beers and are excited after the success of the first pull where we caught a little over a limit (1 limit = 80 spot prawns per licensed individual). By the second pull, they've had a few more drinks, including some whiskey, and C and T are examining the shrimp we're throwing in the livewell. C is very tipsy and grabs one of the larger shrimp to bring over to BF so he can show how big they are. For those who don't know, spot prawns have a large, long and very sharp spike extending out from the front of their head (above their mouth where the nose would be). When drunk and stumbling C went to show the big shrimp to BF he accidentally "stabbed" (more like scratched, but did draw blood) BF in the cheek with the shrimp's spike. T looked at C, while Dad was making sure BF was fine, and said to BF, "Dude, he tried to murder you with a _shrimp_!" Seeing that BF was fine (except for the scratch which was disinfected and covered with a band aid), I burst out laughing and cried, "Holy shit, you got _shanked_ by a _shrimp_!" That had everybody laughing and joking about how BF was almost killed by a murderous shrimp and how that "was one prison story you'd never think to hear". C also earned the nickname "Shrimp Shanker" in honor of his accidental murder attempt. Dad eventually had to ban C from the livewell and shrimp counting when he tried to make two prawns "sword fight" and stabbed his hand. **

**Terms:**

 **Kirá —[key-rah] Meaning "energy of will", it is what Humans call "Conqueror's Haki" or the "King's Will". This _ki_ is only accessible to alphas amongst the Drakkón and is considered to be a form of attack when used on another.**

 **Kýn'vráls —[kyeen-vr-ahl-ss] Roughly means "Blood-Shield"; in Human terms these individuals would be called the "alpha" of a flight of Drakkón. Not to be confused with a flight's "leader" (which every flight would have) as only alphas possessed _kirá_. Alpha Drakkón will not obey the commands of another as their inherent instinct rejects the very idea of submitting to another's will. Therefore, it is rare for a flight to possess more than one alpha and peacefully coexist. Usually if more than one is present it's because one is the leader of the flight while the other(s) is/are just hatchlings. Once an alpha hatchling is old enough they will be instinctively compelled to leave their home flight in search of one to call their own. Alphas (adolescent or older) meeting for the first time see each other as semi-equals no matter the age gap; even if one is several decades (or centuries) older or very obviously stronger than the other, neither will show a form of submission to the other. They will, of course, show respect for their fellow alpha unless they have cause to ignore and/or forego natural decorum.**

 **Ly'sólbi —[lee-sōl-bee] What Drakkón called the early or morning sun. "Sólbi" meaning "sun", "ly" meaning "beginning".**


	9. Revelations, Questions and Boundaries!

**A/N: Holy shit, thank you everyone for making my self-esteem skyrocket and making me feel all giddy inside! Love seeing all the new favs/follows and reviews! And thanks to all those still following me since the posting of Chapter 1!**

 **Again, because I** **keep getting** **PMs/Reviews related to this, there will be** **NO Ace/Marco** **in this story! There will simply be bromance (Ace &Marco) aka ****SIBLING/FAMILY LOVE!** **Not actual yaoi. However, since this is ASL + WBP we're talking about, there** **will be** **jokes on both sides about the two's close relationship.**

 **I've also got some PMs about ages too. Right now (and this will be mentioned in this chapter or next) Luffy is 14, Ace/Sabo 17. It is also early August (July 31** **st** **when ASL was "kidnapped" by WBP). Just so you know the timeline I am working with. Will eventually get to whys of everything but you'll have to be patient (sorry, but at least you have something to look forward to and/or guess about).**

 **Ah! Before I forget, does anybody know Sabo's last name? Seen a couple versions but most common one used is "Outlook". Don't know if that was made up (if so, then also don't know by who) or if someone managed to find that somewhere. Just heads up, I plan on using that as his last name in this story (again, explanations for differing names WILL come!) so credit for that name goes to wherever it originally came from, but not to me!**

 **And if you thought my shrimping story was funny (more where that came from, too) I am also thinking of maybe incorporating a crabbing story of mine into this fic. Probably other stories from my life too, since I am the oldest of three siblings and shit just seems to happen around my family. Have yet to experience a "normal" vacation/holiday where** ** _something_** **didn't go sideways. Running joke of our family is that "it isn't a family vacation until something ridiculous and/or bordering on the impossible happens". Aaaand…I get kicked out of wherever I happen to choose as the place I sleep; which has also occurred every damn vacation we've ever had where I was present. Is practically tradition to kick BlueMoon out of her claimed spot (room/bed), as it's happened ever since I can remember! Even when I thought I was in the clear (only had a day or so left before end of vacation),** ** _something_** **would happen which caused me getting booted and forced to relocate.**

 **Now that I have ranted and given a couple spoilers, on to the chapter!**

 **UPDATE:** **Okay, for whatever reason this did not post when I originally tried a couple weeks ago. Don't know why but it might have something to do a faulty wi-fi connection and not the site itself. Also put in here that I was going out of country for work-related reasons and wouldn't be able to post something until I got back. Which is why this chapter is so damn long. It was** ** _supposed_** **to tide you guys over until I came back and submitted the new chapter but it never got put up (again, think it's because of wi-fi issues). So yeah, am back and new chappy will be up this Saturday sometime.**

 **P.S. If it wasn't obvious before, I don't have a Beta to read over chapters for spelling/grammar mistakes so if you see any just PM me about them and I'll fix them soon as I can.**

 **Disclaimer chips! (Because I had a dream about eating Tostitos tortilla chips and woke up to find there were none in the house which led to a 20min stint of depression)**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Revelations, Questions and Boundaries! Whitebeards Closing Distance**

* * *

Luffy fidgeted restlessly in the shadows. Waiting for Sabo to give them the 'all clear', he looked around from atop the sloped rafters in the room's darkened corner. The training room was nice and large, perfect for the exercise Ace and Sabo (mostly Sabo) had planned for him.

Every night (and several times during the day), the three would sneak away to see what more they could learn of their new surroundings. In their exploration of the giant ship, the trio had been excited to discover a myriad of connecting vents and small passages, plus the many little hideaways, which extended throughout the _Moby Dick_. Already they had set up several of the hidden spaces/cubbyholes to accommodate them in the form of small nests, stocking them with blankets, pillows, towels and other soft miscellaneous items to be used for bedding. To keep the Whitebeard crew unaware, Sabo had made sure to only take supplies from lesser used storage closets or, if needed, only one or two items from the more frequented ones.

The spaces were somewhat cramped with Ace, Sabo and Luffy using them, so Luffy could only allow his tail out or scales. They hadn't used the rooms Whitebeard directed Marco to lend them since that one time. Seeing evidence of someone trying to get drop on them had effectively put the three off from using the two rooms as anything but storage for their possessions. As a precaution, Sabo and Ace had gone through their belongings and removed anything that might even _hint_ at what Luffy truly was. Chief among those items were Sabo's journals detailing Lu's growth, habits, and abilities; a couple journals were completely devoted to sketches and colored drawings of Luffy in his dragon and hybrid forms.

Luffy was always excited when Sabo or Ace wanted to go exploring, the dragon seeing it as a fun adventure. Only once had they managed to sneak Lu out for the youngest to go swimming and fishing (with clear instructions to stay near the ship). Sabo had made the decision to learn how the systems on the orlop deck operated. That way the dragon would (hopefully) have an easier time of sneaking off the ship to hunt since they were told the Whitebeards wouldn't be making landfall anytime soon. The only thing Sabo and Ace worried about with this plan (and Luffy was also wary of) was the difference between the seas of the New World and Paradise. The Sea Kings were much bigger here and there was a likelier chance of encountering them out in the open water compared to Paradise. Even at full-size, Luffy could be in danger of being eaten by one if he wasn't careful. But Luffy needed to eat (a lot) and they couldn't rely solely on fishing all day.

Which brought the boys to another part of their reasons for mapping out the ship: food sources.

Following Lu's nose, the brothers were able to locate the kitchen pantry (a super large pantry at that) and several nearby storage rooms devoted to storing only food items. Being the more responsible brother, Sabo made Luffy promise he could only pilfer from the ship's food stores if accompanied (monitored) by either Ace or himself. Given the chance, it was likely the younger raven would eat anything he could reach and clear out an entire storeroom before admitting to being full. They didn't need a bunch of starving pirates breathing down their necks. Luffy, pouting, reluctantly agreed to Sabo's terms.

Another thing the trio's skulking about accomplished was Luffy being able to examine a number of the crew to see if they were 'okay' for the brothers to be around (most either getting a comment of being Good or Not Bad). They were spotted a few times, sort of, despite their attempts to hide. In a couple instances, at night, someone had been walking around with a lantern and the light reflected off Lu's eyes (causing them to glow a yellowish-green color). Another time they were spotted darting down a corridor, jumping from one shadow to another, before finding one of the little-known passageways and ducking into it. After another close encounter Ace had to use a floating ball of fire (looking like one of his green Fireflies, but harmless) to distract a crewman so the brothers could make a stealthy exit from the room. Seeing how well it worked (and how freaked out the guy had been when the floating orb just vanished), the brothers began making games of using the green fire globes to confront/distract the pirates they came across. It didn't help the Whitebeard crew's case that many began thinking a ghost had started to haunt the ship. When Luffy overheard this and shared the news with Ace and Sabo, the three immediately started making plans of how to utilize this information ("properly" Sabo had said with a devious smirk) in future nighttime adventures.

They got lucky the day before and found a ceiling vent in the back corner of the training room which connected to another a couple corridors away. Using Lu's rubber powers and tail, the three found places in dark room's shadowed rafters to hide out while keeping watch. The presence of the rafters confused Ace and Sabo at first (Luffy had taken a quick liking to their presence and didn't question it) until they spotted rings and hooks on the underside of the beams. The pirates probably hung targets or other training tools from them to practice on.

After Ace's attempt on Whitebeard that night the three high-tailed it (stealthily) to the vent that would let them into the room. Spread about the rafters, Luffy and Ace were waiting for Sabo to finish searching the area with _kisú_ (seeing as the blond was more proficient at it than the two ravens).

/We're clear./

/( _Excited_ ) Yay! Finally, I get a good stretch!/ Luffy promptly shucked his vest and brought out his wings, tail already out. Smiling, the dragon jumped from the rafter and glided down to floor. Ace lit the way with several Wisps so that his brother didn't knock anything over.

The older two followed after Luffy, Sabo landing on the pile of mats settled against one of the walls and Ace partially turning to fire to slow his descent and lightly touch upon the wood planks. They had to remain quiet so no one would overhear them and come investigate. Luffy had been getting antsy, though creeping about in the shadows and stalking pirates had helped, so when Sabo brought this training idea up to Ace the latter had swiftly agreed to it. It was risky but, if they were careful, it would really benefit their baby brother.

Sabo's plan was to use the dead hours of the night to help Luffy stretch his wing muscles. His wingspan had grown to ten feet in this (mostly) Human-form and the blond calculated that Lu should be able to fly soon in his dragon-form. The purpose of this exercise was to help their brother build up wing muscle (which they had been doing for the last few weeks whenever they could) and get used to the motions of flight. Right now, if Lu tried really hard and concentrated, he could hover for a minute or two. It was exhausting and his wings weren't strong enough for more than that at the moment, but it was progress which made him face the expected soreness in his back with glee.

Ace grinned as he watched Luffy stretch his muscles and do Sabo's assigned warmups, the scaly tail flicking back and forth in his little brother's excitement. Sabo also smiled at the scene, the youngest sibling's eyes catching the floating firelight and reflecting in an eerie fashion that seemed to make Luffy's wide grin appear almost malevolent. Lu muffled a giggle when Ace commented he needed to do the exercises correctly and not just rush through them.

/( _Annoyed_ ) We make you do them for a reason, remember? You couldn't even move after that first time because you strained your back./

/( _Happy Amused_ ) Yeah, remember. Everyone kept giving you and _Sávbó_ funny looks… / Luffy giggled again. A question crossed his mind at the memory. Tilting his head to up at Ace and also shooting a glance at Sabo as he did another stretch, he asked /( _Curious Confused_ ) Why was that, anyway?/

Both older brothers' cheeks tinted pink, Ace glancing away at the wall while Sabo hid his face in the shadow of his top hat. They'd had to toss a couple of their crew overboard that day for the inappropriate things they'd insinuated the three (mostly Ace and Sabo against Luffy) had done the night before on the island the Spades stopped at. Thank whatever deities may or may not exist that the idiots hadn't brought any of their questions to Lu; it would just end up with a huge misunderstanding.

/( _Fine Noworry_ ) It was worrisome, Scales. They were merely concerned that Fire and I had gotten a little overzealous in our spars with you./ Sabo replied, smiling benignly with closed eyes at the younger teen.

Ace huffed but added his own small pulse of agreement. He really felt sorry for anyone who got on his blond brother's Shit List. The fire-user was of the firm opinion that Sabo was the only person in the world capable of pulling off a completely innocent and angelic face while simultaneously ripping out someone's beating heart and crushing it in his fist. There was a reason one of their brother's epithets in Paradise had been the "Bloody Gentleman", despite his Wanted poster reading "Black-Fist Lazúl". Luckily, that side of Sabo only surfaced when either Ace or Lu were being threatened. Ace had also earned the moniker "Inferno Demon" for the same reason.

Luffy made a dismissive shrug and finished with his warming up. He slowly began flapping his wings, the first exercise Sabo devised meant to help his back muscles become acquainted with the strain of the movement.

Shaking his head after side-eying his younger blond sibling, Ace got to work on his _own_ exercises. He really wanted to experiment with his new idea of making flaming wings to better match with Luffy's draconic characteristics. Ace had noticed how Lu sometimes pouted at the differences that cropped up between the brothers due to being from different species. The fire-user had been trying to create a working pair of flaming wings he could use to fly but the actual application in reality was experiencing…difficulties. Yeah, Ace could _form_ the damn things, but that was _all_ he could do currently. They were _supposed_ to act like actual wings—with the added perk of being made of fire and, relatively, un-damageable—and allow him to fly like Lu'll eventually. But he couldn't even manage the basic damn flapping motions!

Sabo just smirked as he watched Ace scowl at the flame-wings. After a few minutes, the elder raven dispersed the flames and sat down to glare at the ground. Both Luffy and Sabo chuckled at their brother's obvious frustration.

/( _Amused_ ) What, pray tell, are you trying to accomplish with this "cool idea"?/

Ace looked over at the blond partially hidden in shadow. /( _Irritated_ ) I know you're smirking, Sabo. Quit it!/ Naturally, said smirk only grew at those words. /And, if I could get the damned things to work right, I will get a badass pair of wings that will let me fly! ( _Smug_ ) Then _you'll_ be the only grounded dragon between us. /

Luffy stilled his wings, letting them droop as he frowned over at his older brother. /( _Concern_ ) Don't worry Sabo. ( _Happy Excited_ ) When I can fly I'll take you up lots and lots of times!/

/( _Happy Grateful_ ) Thanks, Scales, but you don't have to worry about that./ Sabo's soft smile that had been directed at the dragon turned into a triumphant and mocking grin when he turned back to stare at Ace. /I'd be more worried about a certain charcoal-brain falling from the sky when his "wings" get _wet_. /

Cheeks aflame, Ace scowled at his brothers as they tried to stifle their laughter. ' _I didn't think of that…_ '

"Ne ne! Watch this!" Both older boys, one still snickering as the other fought to banish the embarrassed blush on his face, turned to watch the excited younger raven.

Seeing he had his brothers' attention, Luffy began to beat his black wings faster and harder. Biting his lip in concentration, he slowly began to hover a few inches off the floor. Ace scooted back to give his baby brother more room, a proud smile gracing his features that mirrored Sabo's.

Luffy's hovering stint lasted only a few minutes before he thumped back to the ground and fell on his butt. The smaller raven beamed at his older brothers, excited over his recent accomplishment. It was the longest he'd stayed airborne yet!

/( _Happy Excited_ ) Did you see, did you see!? How long was it?/

/( _Happy_ ) Yes, Lu, we saw. Good job, you're getting better./

/You lasted just over three minutes this try. Your time is improving. Very good job, Luffy./ Sabo replied with a gentle look to Luffy's question. /Let's go to sleep./ A grumble from Ace's stomach, echoed a moment later by Lu's and Sabo's, had the blond tacking on with an audible sigh / _After_ we grab a late-night snack, that is. /

/( _HappyHappy_ ) Yes!/ Ace and Luffy chorused, getting up and readying themselves to exit the room in record time. The younger raven recalled his tail and wings and the older scanned him over to make certain nothing was missed.

Done with that task, the dark-haired duo used Ace's lights to comb their training area. Ambling over, Sabo picked up and tossed the dragon's red vest to him while the three checked to make sure no evidence of their presence was left behind. Finding nothing incriminating, they latched onto Luffy who brought them back up into the rafters. A final check was made of the area below before Ace doused all but one small Wisp, which the brothers used to make their way back to the vent they used to enter the room.

Several minutes of silent travel—or nearly silent, as Ace and Luffy's grumbling black holes startled a crewman wandering back to his bunk from the bathroom; after falling back asleep the division member had bad dreams about growling balls of fire chasing him through dark halls—the trio reached the vent that connected to the ones leading to the kitchen. Reaching their destination, Sabo paused to make a quick scan for presences other than theirs. Finding none, he quietly and carefully popped the grate covering the vent off (Luffy stretching an arm from behind to hold off to the side) before shuffling his body forward to dangle half-way out of the vent. Luffy wrapped his free hand around the blond's ankles, the touch letting Sabo know he could pull the rest of his body out to hang from the opening, and lowered the other to the kitchen floor (after bracing himself so he wouldn't accidentally slide out after Sabo). A tap had the hand releasing Sabo's ankles but remained stretched as the middle brother took hold of the lanky arm above the wrist.

Rubber body wiggling towards the opening, Luffy peaked around the room and sniffed to see if the place was truly empty. Hearing, seeing, and smelling nothing, a thumbs up had Sabo releasing the rubber arm for Lu to retract with a quiet snap. Thanking the youngest's ability to be squished and experience little to no harm, Ace (grumbling about tight spaces) squeezed in by Luffy to catch a look at the area; it was easier to make a Wisp follow someone when he could see them and Sabo could use the light. After raiding the large pantry (liberating a small canvas sack to carry everything) and relieving a few items from one of the impressive fridges, Sabo followed the dim orb of fire back over to his waiting brothers.

Ace retreated from the vent's opening and turned part of himself to fire so he could easily twist around to head back. Luffy maneuvered his flexible self to do the same while holding onto the grate before extending a foot out and down to Sabo. Lifting his brother up to join them, Luffy twisted and reached around the blond (pouting when expressly forbidden to not touch the bag of food) to fit the vent covering back in place.

Internally cheering at the success of their 'mission', the brothers happily retreated to one of their hidden resting spots to enjoy the night's spoils.

* * *

"I'm telling you, Marco, the ship might be haunted for _real_!"

"I'll check but I don't believe there are any rodents onboard, yoi."

"Overheard one of the guys in the—Sixth, I think?—say that they heard a growl and then—Whoosh! This glowing orb comes out of _nowhere_ , growls again, and _chases_ him down the hall before _disappearing_ suddenly!"

"When did you start noticing the food going missing? And how much?"

"Are you listening, you stupid chicken? There are _ghosts_ on the _Moby_! We're in danger of being possessed by _evil spirits_!"

"Could you list what exactly is missing, yoi?"

" _Vist~y_! The blue turkey is ignoring m~e -Ow!" Said swordsman raised an eyebrow at his overly dramatic friend and brother, who was now pouting and rubbing the back of his head where Marco had smacked him.

"You brought that on yourself, Thatch." Also ignoring the talk of possible resident phantoms, Vista asked, "Are you sure that you just didn't keep track of how much you're giving to those three when going to chat with them?" Marco looked over at the chef sitting on his bed when he heard the other scoff.

"O' course I'm sure. Just this morning I noticed one of my platters of breakfast dumplings missing, empty plate left behind, and several fruits in the same fridge. Some things out of the pantry, including some of Kingdew's jerky and Namur's specially smoked and dried fish, are gone, too." Thatch crossed his arms and shot a pointed look at his two brothers. "Yes, I _have_ been taking the new brats snacks when I visit them, but I know _exactly_ how much I have been feeding them. Since I'm Head Chef and am _responsible_ for making sure our family has enough to eat on this ship, food going _missing_ is a big deal to me."

Sighing, Marco took off his reader's glasses and shifted the desk chair to face his fellow commanders more directly. Leaning back in his seat with crossed arms, the First Division Commander turned half-lidded blue eyes on the top hatted swordsman. "First off, I think your problem and his," the blond gave a nod at Thatch, "are connected, yoi."

Confused—he had kinda burst in on the two talking to rant about missing food and rumors of ghostly sightings—Thatch looked up at Vista, "What's your issue?"

"Missing polish for my swords." Thatch stared at the man. Vista gave a small shrug and elaborated, "Can't find the nice polish I normally use, seems to have vanished from where I left it accidentally in the storage closet down the hall. Had to resort to a spare polish I keep in case I run out of the other kind. Not too hung up on it, however, since there was only bit left in the can anyway."

"Sooo…" Thatch gave Marco a skeptical look, "you think that the ship is being haunted by hungry, kleptomaniac ghosts? What kind of bird seed are you _eating_?" Vista tried not to laugh at the irritation shining in the phoenix's lazy eyes.

Instead, the older swordsman interjected with a light, "They aren't 'kleptos' for taking a nearly empty can of blade-polish. It's partially my fault for leaving it in a shared storage closet to begin with. I just wished to make sure _you_ weren't the one who took it to use for one of your devious plots."

"Well, it _wasn't_ me this time which means it was the ghosts," the cook retorted with a smug huff. "So there!" Vista rolled his eyes at the tongue his auburn-haired brother stuck out at him.

Giving the pompadoured individual an unimpressed glare, the blond responded, "No, yoi. Again, there. Are. No. Ghosts."

"But—"

"When did you first start noticing the food going missing, yoi?"

Thatch thought about it. The largest amount so far had disappeared sometime early this morning or late last night. Before that, he'd noticed smaller amounts vanishing either overnight or since he had last ducked into the pantry or one of the food storage rooms to grab something. "Been about six or seven days…"

"As I recall, that is also about the time rumors of 'ghosts' haunting the ship also began," Vista added thoughtfully.

Marco smirked when realization struck his two brothers.

* * *

Luffy smiled at the giant, shaggy "dog". Stefan, the name he was told the large beast went by, looked more like a small wolf to him—'small' being the relative term.

Whitebeard's battle-hound (the dragon _and_ Ace had to be informed by Sabo what that was) was only small compared to the wolves back on Goa Island and some other large canines the brothers had met previously. The off-white dog stood about four feet tall from head to floor (almost six when sitting) and weighed near 260 pounds. So while Stefan was a "small wolf" to the brothers, everyone else on the _Moby Dick_ saw the massive dog as an exceptionally _large_ canine.

"You got the stuff, Lu?" Luffy turned around to grin at Ace.

"Yeah! He doesn't mind this scent. Likes it more than the other ones we found."

Sabo, carrying over the rest of their supplies to drop them near the showers, huffed at Luffy's statement. "Hff, good. I can't find any other shampoos that aren't overly strong-smelling. I am a little surprised he likes the flowery smell over the cinnamon one, though."

"Shishishi! Maybe he'll take that one next time."

Ace set a bunch of towels down on a bench outside the shower area. Standing up and eyeing the "dog"—' _Lu's right, that thing's a small wolf. Definitely not some_ dog _._ '—and their pile of varied cleaning/grooming items, the fire-user asked, "Any idea _why_ nobody on this damn boat bothered to give this guy a decent grooming? I heard he's s'pposed to be white or something but his fur's more a dingy, light grey." Luffy shrugged, going back to rubbing the giant canine's ears.

Luffy had come to them the day before about helping Stefan get a nice bath. Ace and Sabo had been surprised at the request initially considering, last they heard, the beast had been very wary of Lu (closer to hostile, actually). Their baby brother had laughed and said he'd 'talked' with Stefan and came to an agreement with the large dog. According to Luffy, because "Steffy and Luffy are friends now" he wanted to help with the other's grooming while doing some of his own—with Sabo and Ace's help since some of the dragon's scales were hard to get to—in an effort to bond with the wolf-like dog. Ace and Sabo had been a little leary at first, Stefan was damn _huge_ for a vessel-bound animal and had already demonstrated his dislike of Lu, but relented after being assured that the whole bonding-via-bathtime was Stefan's idea.

It made sense once Sabo thought about it; Luffy and Stefan were both 'pack' animals and typically reinforced social bonds between pack members through things like grooming one another. Ace was convinced to take part after he was assured that Stefan would let him use his Fruit's ability to quickly dry the dog (he was less tolerant of the smell of wet-dog than Sabo and Lu were) and Luffy told him that he needed to check a spot on the dragon's back. Seeing the palm-sized patch of dry skin on the younger's back, which meant his dragon-hide was too dry and likely had loose scales, was the ultimate clincher for the older pair of brothers.

"Do we brush before or after washing him?" Sabo asked as he picked up a comb from the pile at his feet. The three were borrowing the comb and a couple brushes from some of the cabinets lining one of the smaller walls of the room. They'd admittedly forgotten such a detail until the blond had stumbled across them while he and Ace were hunting for towels. Naturally, they were going to clean the hair-care tools after using them on the huge dog (though Ace made the short-lived attempt to convince Sabo they shouldn't).

"Um," Ace looked objects on the floor then over at Stefan wagging his tail and sitting next to Luffy. "Wouldn't it be similar to how we don't oil Lu's scales until after we bathe him? Since we remove the loose ones during the bath when his hide softens from the water?" Sabo also glanced from the comb in his hand to the duo sitting near the tiled showers.

Dropping it back onto the pile, he blithely replied, "Makes sense when you put it that way. Alright then, we'll save the heavy brushing for _after_ the bath."

Walking over to the tiled shower area, Ace examined the place to see how this was supposed to work. There were several stations where you could sit with a small stool and a shower nozzle with a small hose attached along one wall. The other held several fairly large stalls made with a tall, tiled wall on either side. A curtain hanging from a rope covered the front of each stall. Closer inspection showed a small hook at the upper corner of each wall that the looped ends of the rope could be attached to. Unfortunately, as Ace eyed the two rows of showers before him, it didn't look like they would have an easy time of bathing Stefan using either of them.

The dog plus he or Sabo (Luffy would be too busy playing to actually _wash_ the dog until they got to the fur-brushing part of this venture) would make for an awkward and cramped shower. The little showers with accompanying stools on the opposing side would be difficult since the hoses weren't very long and the shower heads were at chest height. Basically: too much coordination required.

"Luffy, are you sure _this_ was the bathroom Stefan 'said' to use?" He had come to the same conclusion as Ace.

Both brothers turned around when they heard a low 'hwuf'—' _Did that dog truly just_ scoff _at Ace and I?'_ —followed by Luffy giggling.

Lazily swishing his tail side to side, Stefan calmly walked passed the older pair and down to the other end of the tiled area. What surprised them was the figure of a still giggling Luffy _riding_ the dog, arms loose and circled about the neck with the dragon's belly resting against Stefan's back and legs dangling to either side.

/Weren't we warned about getting too close to Stefan and trying to pet him?/ Ace asked as he bent down to grab the shampoo and conditioner the dog had selected.

Sabo grabbed the stack of towels before following Luffy and Stefan. /I believe we were warned that Stefan only obeys Captain Whitebeard, is agreeable with anyone who is part of the _Moby Dick_ 's crew, and does _not_ like anyone who's not one of the above. /

/( _Amused_ ) And, Lu being Lu, becomes friends with him./

/If Light can't eat it, he will try to make friends with it./ Privately, Sabo was a little worried about his dragon-sibling's habit (even if he found it amusing). Though, considering Luffy's early years before he became their baby brother, he supposed that it made a sad sort of sense.

"Ne! There's a _big_ bath back here!"

* * *

Whitebeard gazed out across the deck of the _Moby Dick_ , watching his sons scamper about doing their chores with parental love in his expression. He hid the disappoint that bubbled up when yellow eyes couldn't find the forms of three 'sons-to-be' anywhere.

Newgate had seen Ace early that morning when the cheeky brat had tried to kill him, for the 25th or so time, and again a few hours later (for Attempt #26 if the earlier one _was_ Number 25). Luffy and Sabo had been present for the latter attempt but all three had disappeared again soon after. He wished the boys would remain top-side for longer than a handful of hours every day. The sunlight and fresh air would do them good.

It would also be nice if they interacted more with the crew. The trio's flighty behavior and unwelcoming aura was really starting to affect his other children, especially since there was now talk of his home being "haunted by spirits".

' _Only "spirits" on this ship are my sons and daughters and lots of alcohol._ ' Peaking at the turned back of the nurse currently checking his medical equipment, the giant captain took a large gulp of sake he'd hidden from sight.

Naturally, the nurse caught him and reprimanded him thoroughly. Whitebeard gave his daughter a mild glare as she walked off with his precious alcohol. ' _Since when can a captain not be allowed to enjoy some nice sake before noon?'_

That's right. It was almost noon and he hadn't seen his dog anywhere for the past couple of hours. Normally, Stefan would be laying right next the captain's chair by now to enjoy the sun before it got too hot. Lucky for Whitebeard, he spotted Haruta prowling around on deck.

"Haruta, my boy! Come here for a second." His (currently) youngest child quickly made his way over to the man.

"Wutchya need, Pops?"

"Have you seen Stefan about?" Haruta shook his head.

"Nah. Spotted him sleepin' in his doghouse earlier, but haven't seen him since. Why?" Whitebeard waved off the concerned look on the youngest commander's face.

"Just curious. I'm sure he is fine." The large man watched as Haruta started to look around the deck from where he was standing. "What are you looking for?"

"That ASL Trio," the young swordsman replied with a frown. "I want to get know them better, since they're going to be our new little brothers, but they keep vanishing! Me an' Thatch should know every hiding place on this ship but I can't ever find them. I even asked Blenheim, Marco, Izou, Rakuyo and Namur if they've spotted them in one of their little nooks but came up blank." Haruta shot a petulant glare at his father as he went on, "It ain't fair. I want to talk with them but they are making it difficult! The straw hat brat growled at me last time I tried, day before yesterday, and now I can't find them again."

"Don't be impatient, my son," Newgate said with a stern look. "As Marco has already told you, pushing them will only drive those three away. I assume that is what happened when you tried to approach them." Seeing the young pirate's face flush and turn away in shame confirmed his guess. "I am glad you are trying to befriend them. Just remember to take things slow and easy. For their sake." Thinking of Thatch's attempts, the captain added, "I hear Thatch does better with the three brats whenever he has food with him..."

His Twelfth Commander nodded and ran off with a smile.

* * *

"Okay, spill." Thatch and Vista turned questioning looks on the Sixteenth Commander.

"Spill what? What are you on about now, Izou?" Said pirate let out an exasperated huff at the Fourth's question.

"I know you two were in talking with Marco for a while. I want to know why since it's probably related to those three hoodlums we got onboard. Speaking of which," the geisha turned on the formal-looking swordsman, "how were _you_ able to get so close to the brats without getting your head bit off?"

"Ah. Heard about that, did you?"

Glancing around, and feeling like this was going to be a long conversation (*cough* interrogation *cough*) with how their feminine brother was eyeing them, Thatch cut in with, "Since Izou is so concerned about the latest gossip involving our 'brothers-to-be', let's head to my room. We can chat there without everyone trying to listen in."

"I'll just be going then—"

"Oh no you don't!" Vista cringed a little as he gave a semi-wary look at his kimono-clad brother. "I have some questions for you, too! You are coming with us and that is final," Izou stated, giving the large man a look that clearly warned 'don't argue with me on this'.

Vista drooped a little but nodded. Thatch shot his brother a did-you-really-think-that-would-work look, shook his head, then gestured for them to get moving. With an air of triumph, Izou followed his resigned brothers to the indicated room.

Once safely inside with the door closed, the gun-toting crossdresser sat at the foot of Thatch's bed. The cook sat on the other side and Vista took his friend's desk chair.

"Well?" The Fourth Commander rolled his eyes, earning a pop to the head from Izou. "Start. What did you three talk about for so long? And," Izou turned his brown eyes on Vista, "how did you get manage to get close to those brats?"

Sitting back in his seat, the Fifth Commander began telling Izou about his discussion with Marco before Thatch burst in. How things were going missing, especially over the last two days, and some of the odd behavior the wary brothers exhibited. Thatch added his own bits about the disappearing food and elaborated on the various rumors about ghosts haunting their home. They both told of how Marco pointed out that all of these started happening soon after the ASL Trio—"I thought I told you not to call them that," Vista scolded Thatch—were forced into staying onboard. The recap ended when Thatch shrugged and commented that Marco kicked them out so the "stupid blue chicken" could finish going over some reports.

Izou glanced at the chef with a raised eyebrow. With an amused smirk he asked, "You truly believed we had ghosts onboard?"

The pompadoured man huffed and crossed his arms, moodily remarking, "Ghosts _are_ real. They're almost as bad as _spiders_ , too!" He shivered at the mention of the creepy-crawlies. ' _Spiders are_ terrible _! Hate the damn things.'_

Ignoring his fellow commander's comment, Izou looked at Vista and asked, "And you? I heard someone say that Strawhat, Blondie and Freckles let you get within ten feet of them." Vista nodded, glancing at Thatch to see the brunet was paying attention again.

The top hat wearing dual-swordsman recounted his experience of looking for the boys with Thatch. How they were found up in the first basket of the foremast and Strawhat's initial reluctance to come down upon seeing Vista. The Fourth butted in to tell Izou of the kid's nickname for their brother, both laughing at the look Vista gave when it was mentioned. Vista continued on, telling both his thoughts and observations from the time. The cook helped out at the end when they gave a recap of their conversation after the trio had left.

When they finished, Izou took out one of his fans and began tapping it on his palm. Thatch and Vista just waited for the other pirate to finish going over the conversation and collect his thoughts. Rushing the man would just earn them a smack to the head with one of the folding fans. Maybe even haki-enhanced if the geisha was annoyed enough.

"You said that Strawhat came down _after_ you promised not to do anything to his brothers?" Vista nodded. "Hmm…"

There was something important there, Izou could feel it. Thatch had said the little brat had stopped snacking on a fruit when Blondie visibly relaxed and stared over at Vista for a few seconds. The kid then reached into the bag and grabbed out the only sandwich in it before tossing it at the large pirate. Both his brothers interpreted this to mean the runt would allow the man to come closer. A memory of Marco approaching the group one morning drifted to mind.

' _I wonder..._ ' The geisha glanced at Thatch and asked, "You don't know _why_ they let Vista come closer? Or why they let you so close to them?"

"Nope. Again, Luffy said something about being 'better together' and the other two didn't explain what that was supposed to mean. Don't know why they let me so close, more than Marco as Vista told me, but it I thought it might have something to do with food. They're D's, so food goes a long way with them." Izou snorted and chuckled at Thatch's last comment.

His brother was very observant when it came to people and their behavior, but sometimes he could be rather dense. Vista wondered if the kimono-wearer figured out some part of the mystery surrounding the trio.

' _On second thought, it's Izou. He_ would _be the first to figure something like this out if Marco hasn't already._ ' Everyone knew that after Marco, Izou was one of the most observant people in their family. Only Thatch could compete with him when it came to analyzing other's behavior. Pops didn't count because he was, after all, Pops.

"Vista, you approached the brats from Sabo's side, correct?" When he received a confirming nod he continued, "And Thatch told you to stop and sit right as you were a little under ten-feet from them. Or, right as you were about ten-feet from _Sabo_." Thatch exchanged puzzled faces with Vista.

"Huh? What does that have to do with anything?" Vista took in Izou's widening grin at the cook's confusion.

Narrowing his eyes, he stated, "You know something."

"Psh. Just an idea but it might be something," the Sixteenth Commander replied as he waved his fan, snapping it closed. "Marco has told us that the brats respond to truthfulness and he's told me they let him near because he _promised_ not to do anything that 'made them uncomfortable and he would leave if they wanted him to'. Vista here," the fan was pointed at said pirate, " _promised_ not to harm the brat's brothers."

"What about me? I said that too but they let me be nearer than even Marco."

"The food, perhaps?" Thatch shook his head at Vista.

"Nah, happened before that. I think." The cook huffed and re-folded his arms across his chest and grumbled, "Food was a mini-battle with 'em. Said I'd never knowingly give them something bad to eat but they still won't take anything other than raw fruits and veggies from me." He glanced at Vista and shrugged. "Probably why Luffy gave you the sandwich I left in the bag. Wanted to see if they would finally accept something like that but guess not."

Izou, feeling they were getting a little off-track and _really_ wanting to let his brothers know what was on his mind, cleared his throat to get their attention again.

"Thatch, you told me you did something the first time talking to those three." The cook nodded slowly.

"Yeah," he began hesitantly, "I apologized to Luffy for freaking him out when I grabbed him. But Marco did that too and Visty says he isn't allowed closer than five feet." Izou tsked.

Pointing the fan at Thatch now, he said, "Wrong. Marco apologized on behalf of the crew as a whole and Pops. You, Thatch dearie, apologized for your _own_ actions against the runt."

Adopting a thoughtful expression, Vista leaned forward and asked, "If you are implying that, due to Thatch's apology, the Trio let him be near them then why is Marco able to get almost as close _without_ his saying sorry?"

"Don't know the exact reason for that either," Izou shrugged. Tapping his fan lightly against his chin, the feminine man mused, "I've been thinking about that too, though. Marco must have done something to gain their trust and acceptance that didn't involve him making an apology."

"Since you _obviously_ have an idea would you just say it already, Iz?" Vista smirked at Thatch's huffy tone.

"Hmpf! Fine, you brute." The cook gave a half-hearted scowl at his brother. Looking between his two fellow commanders, Izou shared, "I saw it only once but it got me thinking. Sometimes I see Marco walk up to the brats from Sabo's side. Once, I caught him coming from Ace's—"

"So wh- Ow!"

"Shut it, Thatch. Adults are speaking. Anyway," Izou continued as Thatch rubbed his head, "I noticed a difference in how close Marco was allowed to stand by the boys." Vista and Thatch perked up in interest at this news. "For some reason, our firebird can get closer to Sabo than Ace before the little runt starts growling."

Well, that was news to the two other commanders. But that just drew the question back again to the subject of _why_.

"Ummm… I may be wrong about this, but Marco _was_ trying to get you two to release Sabo when Luffy flipped out, right?" Izou and Vista stared at Thatch. "I've also noticed that Ace and Sabo really listen to their little brother. Ace almost always stops trying to pick a fight with me over things when Luffy tells him to, but only sometimes when it's Sabo."

Vista considered his brothers' words. Marco had also firmly stated that both the older brothers followed along with the youngest's decisions, even seeking Luffy's input on things.

"Basically," the larger swordsman began, "anyone who wants to get the Trio's trust has to first earn the little one's trust. How much trust is given or shown to the person is determined by Luffy."

Izou pointed his fan at Vista, proudly exclaiming, "Exactly! I bet Marco could get even closer to them if he apologized like dear Thatch, here, did." Thatch looked confused again.

"But what does the Trio—or Luffy, I guess—feel that the chicken should be sorry about?"

"That first morning, if you recall," Vista said with a grim tone, "Luffy watched _Marco_ take the kid's big brother from them." The cook and geisha grimaced at the reminder.

' _Yeah. That would make the kid wary about letting the blue turkey close to his brothers._ '

The commanders' discussion was interrupted when the sudden pounding of feet and yelling that erupted from the other side of the door.

First came large thumps that sounded like a large beast running passed the door. It was accompanied by loud giggling and a call of "faster, faster!"

Exchanging looks of bemused shock, the three rushed to open the door.

"GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE SHIT! Stop fucking laughing, Waves!"

Vista, Thatch and Izou were just in time to see a flaming Ace hurtling down the corridor and shouting obscenities like a pro. Sabo, breathless with laughter, followed close on the raven's heels.

Still in shock at the sight, Thatch lightly inquired, "Did anyone notice something different about Ace's hair?"

* * *

Marco had been subjecting Whitebeard to another lecture about sneaking sake behind the nurses' backs when the blond caught the distinct sound of someone yelling. It was after his son went silent and started looking at the door leading to the Commander Quarters with a puzzled face (not that anyone could really tell) that the giant man also heard a commotion.

First there was the muted sound of yelling. As it came closer, the others near the helm's lower region began to quiet and listen in. In the silence it became obvious that whoever was yelling was pissed at someone.

Marco's finer hearing caught the sound of something large running up from below and _giggling_ under the steadily increasing volume of shouting. Shouts that were in a familiar voice…

Whitebeard's brows rose when Stefan suddenly burst through the door to below. Everyone else on-deck stopped what they were doing when they saw the giant white beast emerge from the doorway with a rush of flames erupting behind him.

"Found your dog, Pops," Marco absently remarked. Whitebeard just huffed at the commander's cheeky comment.

Giggling sounded again and all eyes widened (several pirates looking like they were about to pop out of their skull) when they saw _Luffy_ clinging to the large furred back as Stefan landed on the deck. The dog took off again just as his feet touched the ground.

"Faster, faster!" Marco's bored expression turned to one of shock and mild horror.

' _Stefan is going to maim the brat for trying to ride him!'_ At least the blond had a better grasp of why the dog was running from a fireball. Ace's pissed shouts made more sense now.

A second blast of fire streaked by the First Division Commander and Captain. Ace's voice drew the staring from a giggling kid with a death wish to the pissed (and very likely worried) fire-user bolting out of the doorway.

"GET YOUR SCRAWNY ASS BACK HERE!" Whitebeard watched as the fiery teen sprinted after the younger raven trying to ride his battle-dog. A laughing blue blur ran by following Ace. "Stop fucking laughing! I hold you responsible too, shitty sea-wave!"

"Bahahaha! B-but Luf-hehehe… Lu did such a good job of capturing your 'fiery' personality!"

The next ones to appear from below were an out of breath Vista, Thatch and Izou. Marco kept disbelieving eyes on the scene in front of him, ignoring the new arrivals as they approached.

"Is Luffy okay!? We heard that he tried to hitch a ride on Stefan and was in danger!"

Also focused completely on the chaos rampaging around the deck, Whitebeard responded with heavy amusement, "The little brat's in danger but not from Stefan." Blinking owlishly up at their father-figure, the new arrivals all turned to see what the man was looking at.

Stefan, coat a healthy and almost sparkling white, was racing about the deck knocking pirates out of his way (those who didn't move fast enough). Luffy, giggling like a madman (or a suicidal idiot in some Whitebeard Pirates' opinions), was perched on the huge beast's back. A familiar orange cowboy hat being held on his head.

"I'm gonna barbecue ya in the fucking flames of _hell_ and then throw your damned, stretchy ass in the bloody ocean, rubber-brained shit!" Ace then threw a 'Fire Fist' at the giggling kid, which missed as Stefan agilely jumped out of the attack's way.

"Ace! At least wait until he's done playing with Stefan! We spent all that time and I would prefer not to see our hard work go down the drain." And there was Sabo running after a rampaging Ace. "Besides, I think the new look suits you!" The pirates watched as Sabo only narrowly dodged a fireball aimed at him because the blond fell to the deck due to laughing so hard.

Sabo's comment also had the Whitebeard Pirates taking a second look at the raging fire-man. Upon closer inspection several Whitebeards also hit the deck, holding their stomach as they roared in laughter. Marco's face was lit by an amused grin and he also caught stoic Jozu off by a far railing unsuccessfully holding back his chuckling.

The freckled teen had his hair spiked up in a way that made it appear as if he had a crown of _horns_ on the top of his head. The upper portion of each 'horn' was also a sparkling pinkish-purple. To add to the odd look, the tips were aflame in a mockery of a lit candle.

"How did the little one manage _that_?" Marco smirked at Vista's question.

"Which part, yoi? Taming Stefan or spiking Fire-Fist's hair with glitter and stealing his hat?"

"Gurararara! What a cheeky brat! He's on our ship for eight days and befriends a fierce battle-dog."

They watched as Ace threw more fireballs at Luffy as the straw hatted kid rode his improvised horse around the deck.

"Come back here, Lu! I promise not make your death _too_ fucking painful if ya give up now, rubber shithead!" Thatch was little surprised that Ace was able to even _keep up_ with a running giant dog, though Stefan was hampered by the number of unfortunate pirates standing in his way. "And give back my damn hat, bastard!"

"Gaaah! Run Mini Banana Mustache, he's gaining on us!"

"What's with that name? Luffy does know the dog's called 'Stefan', right?"

Marco gave a lazy shrug at Izou's query, responding in a bored tone, "I told him several days ago. Name's probably because he's Pops' dog, yoi."

"Well, you're partially right about that assumption, Mr. First Division Commander."

Whitebeard, Marco, Izou, Thatch and Vista turned to see a grinning Sabo walking calmly towards them from the left. The top hat wearing blond sat on the circular steps a handful of yards from the pirate officers but remained close enough for them to hear him.

"Lu also only became friends with Stefan just yesterday. The little wolf didn't really stick around long enough for Luffy to interact with him before that."

"Little wolf," Thatch muttered bemusedly.

"But that's what he is, correct? Although, Stefan _is_ the smallest wolf we've ever seen. Perhaps he hasn't reached adulthood?" Whitebeard chuckled at the dumbstruck expressions on his sons' faces.

"No, yoi. Stefan is a 'battle-dog'. He's also an adult and not a wolf," Marco answered with a bored tone.

"Crap! Jump Mini Banana Mustache!" Izou glanced at the white and red blur being chased by a pissed orange fireball.

"Ah, you were also curious about my little brother's moniker for Stefan. That's simple." The Whitebeards returned their gazes to the curly-haired blond giving them a sly grin. "Lu thought it would be 'cool' if Stefan had the same mustache as Captain Whitebeard. He came across some styling wax and wanted to know what it was. We were also giving Stefan a bath and Luffy thought the wax might be useful for grooming Stefan." The commanders (minus Marco) were visibly shocked at this announcement.

"You mean that _beast_ actually let you three give him a _bath_? He only listens to, and likes, Pops…plus Marco to an extent. Everyone else is growled at!" Sabo raised an eyebrow at Thatch.

"Really? Perhaps it is because you guys never tried to give him a proper bath…" Sabo mused. He hid a grin at the shocked faces.

Marco quietly observed the other blond. This was the most he'd heard the young pirate talk at once since the trio came aboard (aka, was forced into remaining on the ship).

"Brat, aren't your brothers going to be worried you aren't with them?" Sabo eyed the large captain.

"I do not believe so," he replied, waving a hand dismissively. "Luffy has expressed to us that you are Good people. My brothers will not react hostilely so long as none of you gentlemen act in a questionable manner towards me."

"If we are…'Good', then might I ask why you are sitting over there?" Sabo turned cold eyes onto Vista. The commanders and Captain were unsettled by the shadows flickering in the young pirate's blue orbs.

With a serious face and icy tone, the top hatted blond's eyes roved over the assembled group as he answered, "Do not mistake my brother's words for something else." Thatch almost flinched at the kid's voice.

' _I thought we were finally passed that. He makes it sound like none of them like us and are just pretending._ '

"Although you have been judged as individuals possessing good character," Sabo continued with the same frigid air, "that does not imply you have our trust. It merely shows that we can rely on the supposition that you people will not immediately stab us in the back when we turn away." Marco exchanged a worried glance with his father at hearing this.

Thatch now openly gaped at the younger pirate's words, internally cringing at what kind of life the three brothers must've had to be so distrusting of others. ' _Sabo and Ace can't be older than twenty and Luffy looks like an eleven or twelve-year-old. What could've happened to make them so cynical?'_

"I see. Then why did you choose to approach those you claim not to trust alone, brat?" After a brief glance up at Newgate, Sabo returned to watching his brothers race about the deck. Luffy was giggling away like a madman and Ace was swearing up a very creative storm.

"Honestly, I am taking Lu's suggestion to heart," he began at length. "Luffy wanted us to relax a little so he played a joke on Ace. Doesn't help that Luffy dislikes being inactive so this is a good way for him to burn off some excess energy." Sensing Ace question his whereabouts and, upon spotting him, Sabo's status—seeing as the blond was seated near a bunch of, to Ace, enemies—he sent a small wave of reassurance to the two dark-haired brothers.

The officers of the Whitebeard Pirates waited for Sabo to say something else until they realized he was done speaking for the moment. Whitebeard stared at the boy for a minute until he, too, continued watching Ace chasing around a battle-dog riding Luffy. Silence reigned over the group; Sabo content with smiling and watching his brothers, the commanders and their captain unwilling to break the awkward tension in the air.

Finally, Thatch's curiosity at how Ace's hair was staying as it was became too much for him.

"Hey, Sabo?"

"Yes, Mr. Fourth?" Marco subtly watched the younger pirate from the corner of his eye.

"How did Luffy make Ace's hair stay like that? The kid is _fire_. He should be able to burn whatever's in his hair out, right?" Izou, Thatch, Vista and Newgate raised an eyebrow in confusion at the flash of intense amusement adorning Sabo's face (Marco never lost his disinterested look, though he was also curious).

"Lu combined this mustache wax he found, some questionably strong hair gel—likely Mr. Fourth's—and a large quantity of glitter. Though I admit to being curious as to where he managed to find the last item," he said the last part with a slight frown. With a small shrug of the shoulder, he went on in a light tone, "The concoction formed a thick paste that hardened, fairly impressively I should add, when Ace initially became conscious of what Lu had done."

"But, like this idiot said, Ace can just burn that awful crap out of his hair." A knowing, mischievous smirk grew on the younger's lips.

Keeping his eyes on the two black-haired Devil Fruit users, Sabo deadpanned, "Naturally. My dear hothead of a brother simply forgot that detail, is all." The Whitebeard Pirates who heard that all sweatdropped, Whitebeard laughing after a pause at the idea.

With less tension resting between them, the Whitebeard Pirates returned their gazes to following Ace rushing after Luffy and Stefan. Fireballs were still flying and the dog, with his giggling passenger, was doing an admirable job of dodging the raging firecracker's flames. Those who were part of the shipwright divisions were just thankful the only thing likely to catch fire was Luffy.

It was about fifteen minutes after he arrived that Sabo moved to stand up. He flicked his eyes over the group then turned to face them. A blank look masked his face, hiding away whatever he may have been thinking.

"Pleasant talk, gentlemen, but I must take my leave now. I would prefer that Ace not kill our precious baby brother via fire or throwing him into the cold water below. Adieu," Sabo finished with a small nod and tip of his hat to Whitebeard and the four commanders.

Watching the ex-Spade jog over to drag Luffy off Stefan's back, while keeping Ace from torching the little idiot, Vista grimly said, "Their view of the world is too dark for kids their age." Everyone silently agreed with the swordsman's conclusion.

* * *

"I swear to every holy and unholy deity or god that ever existed! There was a ghost in the kitchens last night. An evil _poltergeist_ in my precious _kitchen_!"

"Stop being so dramatic, Thatch yoi." Whitebeard grinned at an overly-dramatic and distraught Thatch arguing with the ever-bored looking Marco.

"Gurarara! Why do you believe you saw a ghost, son? Are you sure it wasn't because you spent much of the night drinking with Izou and Blamenco?"

"No! I'm telling the truth Pops! It was really tall and wasn't even touching the _ground_! Just floated— _floated!_ —half-way down from the damn _ceiling_. Waving its spooky, wiggly, long, pale arms while these eerie blue and red orb-things floated around it!" Marco shot a look screaming of his skepticism at the ranting cook.

"It was probably Haruta trying to prank you using a large bedsheet and some rope. I can't believe you fell for that, yoi." Thatch frantically shook his head in denial at his brother and father's disregard of the potential dangers of the phantom.

"No no no! I saw Haruta before I went to the galley. He was going back to his room and couldn't have gotten there before me. Plus, I don't think it was a person covered in a frickin' _sheet_ and hanging from the ceiling."

Marco smirked and dryly asked, "Oh?"

"I didn't see any legs on it. Only a shimmery, pale and flowy 'body' with abnormally long arms," the Fourth Commander held his arms out and wriggled them in a supposedly spooky manner, "that looked like they were trying to grab me so the evil poltergeist could devour my soul!" Marco crossed his arms and leaned back against the leg of Pops' chair.

"Why," the pineapple-like man said in a voice reminiscent of an adult praying for patience while trying to understand a child's ridiculous tale, "do you think it was trying to eat you?" Whitebeard huffed at the mental comparison, thinking it to be rather fitting for the duo.

Throwing his hands up in a fit of frantic energy Thatch cried out, "Because it was saying 'fo~od' and 'hungry~' while trying to get its evil hands on me!"

"Ri~ight. I doubt it was an actual 'ghost' you saw, yoi."

"That's what I'm _saying_! It was a damned _poltergeist_ , or something, which is even _worse_!"

"Thatch," both commanders looked up at Whitebeard, "I believe your brother is correct. I doubt there are any ghosts—" " _Poltergeist!_ " "—haunting the _Moby Dick_ ," the captain finished as if the pompadoured commander hadn't interrupted.

"Ne, what's a 'pole gice'?" The three pirates blinked at each other in surprise before looking over to the other side of the large chair.

Luffy looked back at them with curious dark eyes. The boy was sitting on Stefan's back, straw hat nestled atop shaggy dark hair, as the dog ambled over to stand near the Captain's seat. The three still found it odd (though very amusing) to see such a small brat riding the large animal as if it were a horse. Stefan's mustache that mimicked Pops' just added to the strange image.

A little more used to Luffy's odd behavior, Thatch was the first to snap out of his startled daze.

"I said 'poltergeist'. Pole-ter-geist. And it's an evil ghost." Luffy frowned.

Scrunching his brow, he asked, "Then why didn't you just say 'evil ghost' if that's what you meant?"

"Because it's a _poltergeist_ , not just some random evil ghost."

"But you just said a polly-geist _is_ an evil ghost!"

"It is!"

"Then why did you say it wasn't?" Thatch groaned and threw his hands up in the air, giving the universal sign of 'I give up'.

Whitebeard and Marco unabashedly gave an exasperated Thatch looks of pure amusement.

"Where are your brothers, brat?" Whitebeard had only just noticed the child's only company was the great battle-dog.

For the last ten days the act of seeing one without the other two was a physical impossibility (discounting Ace's ventures as an assassin-wannabe). Just that morning he'd seen the three huddled together on the figurehead and watching the sunrise. Later they'd sequestered themselves at the stern, probably to fish, for a while. It was unlikely for one of them to be sleeping; the trio never seemed to outright _sleep_ when on-deck, barring one or two instances. At most, one of the brothers would lightly doze while the other two kept guard (the crew couldn't call the watching pair's rapt vigil anything less).

"Did you get lost and can't find them?" Thatch inquired. He looked around for the pair while slowly, trying to maintain a casual front, approaching the small straw hatted kid. It would be just his luck if the firecracker ex-captain or icy blond suddenly appeared out of thin air to try and roast or beat his ass for getting too close to Luffy.

Luffy flicked his gaze between the three larger males, unobtrusively keeping track of Thatch's progress. He tried to calm and reassure his brother that he was fine even as the cook's closeness was starting to unnerve him. Stefan picked up on his friend's anxiousness and growled at the brunet. Wisely, Thatch listened to the dog's warning and came to a halt next to the same side of the giant chair the pair faced.

' _So there_ was _a reason Stefan didn't automatically take his place in the shadow of Pops' chair. He's taking cues from Strawhat yoi_ ,' Marco thought as he quietly observed the exchange.

Whitebeard silently watched as the brat had his dog's tail wagging from a hearty shoulder-scratching. The small raven head tilted and a confused look crossed Luffy's young face.

Giving a final pat to the furry white shoulders, the child replied, "They're my brothers. Why wouldn't I be able to find them?"

Ignoring that and the look of 'are you idiots?' (which was annoyingly similar to the one the trio had given him and Thatch when they questioned Ace's control over his fire), Marco cast a swift glance around the deck. He could sense Sabo's presence nearby but couldn't pin it down. Luffy being out in the open and both the older brothers hiding from sight made the First a little uneasy, though he'd never admit it.

"Why are you alone then yoi?" Luffy's focus turned to Pineapple-Head when the tall blond finally moved a half-lidded blue gaze onto the young pirate.

"Eh? I'm not alone," Lu pouted. He grinned at the three Whitebeards and pointed at the dog beneath him while saying, "Mini Banana Mustache is right here and Sabo is right there!"

The two commanders and captain looked up where the brat was pointing. Sure enough, there was the blond gentleman dangling thirty feet above the deck on a small, wooden platform that was tied to the mainmast above the group. "Platform" might be too generous a description; the thing was hardly a few feet wide and a rough foot shorter than the figure laying on their stomach and staring down at the three Whitebeard Pirates with an icy glare.

Yellow eyes saw those dark blues narrow when Thatch waved jovially up at the teen. "I see. Then do you mind if I ask where Ace might be?"

Luffy shrugged at the old man's question. "Ace was being grouchy and went to go silk."

"It's 'sulk', Lu!" The small teen beamed up at his brother.

"Ace's sulking," was the chirped correction. Thatch looked back over at the youngest of the trio.

"Oh? And why would Mr. Moody Fire-Pants be sulking?" While Thatch kept his hazel eyes on the kid riding Stefan, Marco's rose to watch Sabo when he caught Luffy's glance up.

Sabo's face was a neutral slate. His enhanced vision caught the younger blond's eyes flickering between Pops, Thatch, and himself. A small flick of the pirate's fingers from the hand dangling off the platform's edge caused the small dog-rider to give a careless shrug.

"Ace was unhappy about something I said. Sabo agreed with me and that made Ace even _more_ unhappy." With another shrug of 'whatever', Luffy nonchalantly stated, "Ace can get real moody but he'll get over it soon."

"What did you say that upset your brother, brat?" The dragon looked up at the Captain, idly scratching Stefan's side as he scrutinized the giant Human.

/Might as well say it, Lu. I'm rather interested in what their responses might be as well./ Luffy relaxed a little more at Sabo's words.

"I wanted to talk with Giant Banana Mustache Old Man," he stated. Thatch chuckled at the nickname the kid had come up with.

' _I can't believe he said that to Pops' face yoi._ ' Marco's ears caught the muffled snicker coming from above. On second thought, maybe he could believe Strawhat's audacity looking at who his oldest brother was and the botched rescue.

"Then come over here so we can chat. Your brother is welcome to join us if he wants." Luffy eyed the giant man, fingers kneading the thick, warm fur beneath him.

He didn't sense anything _bad_ about the Human. On the contrary, Whitebeard was a Good person. What helped firm Luffy's desire to speak with the large Captain was the fact his aura was very similar to Shanks'. Both were natural-born, true alphas that cared deeply for their _sídna_ , like they should, and also gave the impression that they would do anything to protect those following them. The only other alphas Lu knew of were he, Ace and Shanks; which meant the dragon-child was very interested in how this Captain compared to them.

But… Luffy found himself a little wary of getting closer to the giant Human. He could sense that this being was just as powerful as Shanks. Perhaps even stronger. Instinct told him this person could cause Luffy serious harm even in his strong dragon-form.

Stefan turned his head to cast a dark yellow and brown eye up at the pup on his back. While he trusted his Master to not harm the pup without due cause, the dog was unwilling to do something that might agitate the Not-Human. Already he could smell the scaled pup's nervousness increase at his Master's words. However, Stefan knew his Master had a large soft-spot for pups so this one, no matter how unique, should be no different.

Thatch gawked as he watched Stefan give a light shake of his large body. A huff had Luffy relaxing his grip on the fur, small smile tugging at his lips, as the beast strolled over to sit in front of Pops. Sliding off Stefan's back, Lu moved around to plop cross-legged directly in front of his furry friend. Whitebeard raised an eyebrow when he saw how at home the small brat looked sitting between his pet's front legs. Marco shot his father a look when the animal actually leaned down to nuzzle the dark hair, eliciting a giggle from the straw hat wearing pirate.

"So, brat, what did you want to talk about?" Luffy turned wide dark orbs onto the giant figure seated before him.

A grinned stretched impossibly wide across his small face. "Ne, Giant Old Man, why are you called 'Whitebeard'? You have a mustache, not a beard!" Marco stared at the kid who suddenly adopted a look of extreme concentration. "You should be called… Um… Oh, I know! The 'Great White Banana' or the 'Banana Mustache Pirates'," Luffy exclaimed brightly, visibly proud of the ideas he had put forth.

All three Whitebeard Pirates clearly heard Sabo laughing and pounding a fist against the mast beside him. Luffy's happy and prideful expression practically glowed hearing his brother. Newgate's booming laugh startled him but shortly settled upon sensing only mirth coming from the large Human, a smile reappearing on his face.

Calming down, Newgate's eyes twinkled as he answered, "True, I don't have a beard. The name came from an old joke back in my younger days. Also," the man looked down at the child as he continued in an easy tone, "I don't think my children would appreciate our name being changed to the 'White Banana Pirates'." Luffy got an excited look hearing that.

"Oooh! That's a good name too!"

"No, yoi. That will never happen." Thatch hurriedly nodded his head; no _way_ was that ever, _ever_ going to happen while he had a say.

Puffing his cheeks and pursing his lips, Lu looked off to the side as he pouted, "Meanies."

Thatch smiled when the kid's expression did a complete 180, following Luffy's gaze to see he was now grinning at a slightly nervous Marco.

"What now, yoi?" Whitebeard watched as the brat's grin broadened.

"Ne, Mango—"

"My name is _Marco_ , not 'Mango'. Quit calling me that." A thin brow twitched when the stupid brat plowed on and ignored him. It didn't help that Marco heard both Thatch and Sabo snickering at him.

"—Ace and Sabo said I couldn't eat you even though you're a pineapple that turns into a blue turkey. So you want to join my future crew instead? Ah, but I'm gonna be Captain." A large tick mark pulsed on Marco's temple while Thatch fell to floor clutching his stomach and roaring with laughter.

The tiny brat's cheeky grin and question reminded the Whitebeards of a certain red-haired Emperor that never ceased his offering the same to the Phoenix-zoan. Coincidentally, both the straw hat brat and Red-Hair didn't call Marco by his actual name when making the offer. The similarities between Luffy and Shanks (that stupid, damn hat wasn't helping either) had the tick on the blond commander's head growing even larger.

"No."

"Eeh!? Why not? I'm gonna be a cool Captain!" Thatch started laughing again at the exaggerated look of shock and bafflement on Luffy's face. Whitebeard was chortling quietly as he listened to Sabo sniggering above while switching his gaze from Marco's obvious frustrated exasperation to the brat's humorous expressions.

"No yoi! I also refuse to follow a weak brat." The dragon's eyes brightened at this.

"I'll be stronger when I start my own crew, stupid Pineapple-Head. I'm gonna be Pirate King, too, so I'll also be stronger than you! So there's no problem and you can join the crew of the future Pirate King," Lu finished with a wide, sunny smile that forced his eyes closed.

Marco, Thatch and Whitebeard stared at the beaming brat. Though Marco was still hung up on his irritation with the straw hat kid's persistence and the other two pirates were enjoying the entertainment, they still heard the absolute conviction in Luffy's voice. How he sounded so absolutely certain that _he_ would become the new holder of the coveted title.

"My answer is still 'no', little brat! My loyalty is to Pops only yoi." Whitebeard looked down to see Thatch starting to get to his feet.

"Eeh!?" And there was the comedic confused shock; the brat's jaw was even open and hanging a little lower than the captain thought it should. Luffy schooled his face into an exaggerated pout again and folded his arms. In a voice laced with disappointment, sounding like a child who was told he couldn't have any candy before dinner, he loudly muttered, "Stupid, stingy Mango. I really wanted a blue fire-pineapple-turkey on my crew!"

Thatch fell back onto his hands and knees, pounding the deck and laughing so hard his eyes teared up. The First Commander's right brow and eye twitched violently; a hard, forced smile on his lips gave the man's face a more sinister edge even if his eyes were still only partially open.

"Why you little—"

"Ah cool it, you overgrown chicken," the cook said a little breathlessly. Sitting back on his knees, he wiped his eyes before looking over at Luffy with a huge grin. "Gotta give you props for ruffling his feathers like that, kid."

Marco glared at Thatch. Those stupid puns about birds were getting extremely old.

"But," Thatch continued with a glint in his hazel eyes, "if you're going after One Piece and the title of Pirate King then you'll be up against our Old Man, here." Luffy's focus shifted from Pom-Pom's face to the huge Human sitting in the chair the cook gestured at.

He felt a spark of trepidation from Sabo when the dragon kept staring up at the Captain, head cocked as Luffy examined the man. Lu tried to assure his older sibling that nothing would happen but he didn't think the blond believed him.

"Ne, Old Banana Mustache Man?"

Marco flicked his eyes up when he sensed Sabo's rising hostility, catching his fellow commander doing the same out of the corner of his eye. The blond teen had sat up and was now intently observing them, body tense and obviously ready to jump to Strawhat's defense the second he felt there was a threat. Using Observation Haki to monitor the top hat wearing teen, Marco returned his attention to the two figures on the deck when Whitebeard spoke.

Ignoring Sabo, Newgate inspected the brat seated right in front of the giant battle-hound. He saw something stir in those dark orbs that had him sitting up straighter in his chair. "What is it, brat?"

With a blank face, Luffy asked semi-seriously, "Are you strong?"

"Are you kidding? Pops is known as the World's Strongest and is also called the Ruler of the Seas by some people," Thatch exclaimed. ' _Really, what kind of question is that? Everyone knows how strong the Old Man is. It's why so many idiots' aim is to take him out to prove themselves._ '

Luffy ignored the cook. It irked him that a _Human_ would be called 'Ruler of the Seas' as Drakkón only referred to two particular individuals in their tales by that title. The first had long since gone to sleep and faded from the minds of those living today. From what the dragon knew, the successor also hadn't appeared in centuries. Those two were precious to Luffy's species' culture and it bothered him, somewhere down deep inside, to hear of one who wasn't _them_ be called that.

/Focus, Lu./ Luffy's hand twitched at his brother's warning.

Marco saw the jerk and how the kid's attention sharpened back onto Pops'. He'd have to ask Thatch if one of the trio ever mentioned something related to that title during their snack-chats.

"I am," was the captain's simple answer. By the way Luffy's eyes dimed for a split-second, Newgate had the impression that wasn't what the child had been hoping to hear. If he didn't know any better Whitebeard would've thought he imagined it, for it was gone barely an instant later. The look was replaced by a cocksure grin and a wild, eager glint in the brat's gaze.

Both of the commanders and their captain saw an extreme likeness to Ace in the youngest of the brothers at that moment.

"Really," Luffy's grin widened, shifting his body to rise into a rough fighting-stance, "then how about a fi—" Thunk! Stefan leapt to his feet, crouching protectively over Luffy, and growling up at Sabo.

Initially, Whitebeard's First and Fourth Commanders worried that Luffy was injured, but Stefan blocked any view of the boy so it was extremely hard to tell. Marco felt a sense of relief when he caught no scent of blood. He released the held breath with Thatch when the giant dog shifted and they got a glimpse of an unscathed Luffy. Seeing his sons relax eased Whitebeard's concern over the brat's health.

A small hand reached up to pat the broad white chest bent low to the ground. Hesitantly, Stefan raised himself but maintained a hunched posture; his chest lower than the hindquarters, tail stiff and straight, front legs spread and braced, ears back with his head lowered and tilted to let him look up. Captain and commanders could hear small growls slipping out of the white beast, who remained positioned over the small raven. The movement finally revealed both the little pirate and the thing that was used to attack him. Shocked silence descended over the older pirates.

Those nearby who had seen the captain's pet jumping up and growling at something, causing others to wander over to find out what the commotion was, stared at the scene. Specifically, everyone stared at the small, menacing object sticking out of a wood plank a bare two inches from Luffy's hand.

Marco and Thatch, both taken off-guard by the weapon's startling appearance and apparent target, were understandably upset that they hadn't felt any hint of an impending attack. What further unsettled the pirates present was the intended target of the attack. Whitebeard hadn't even sensed a precursor to the assault; no rise in bloodlust, hostility (Sabo's hadn't changed before or after the attack), or killing-intent was picked up by the three.

"Oi, everything's fine Mini Banana Mustache." Stefan huffed but listened.

Dazed by the proceedings, the gathered Whitebeard Pirates watched as the hound straightened to stand tall. He took a few steps back, still looking up, until Luffy was under his head. The boy was squatting on the balls of his feet, one hand braced on his knee with the other planted on the deck. What was clearly a small knife of some sort was wedged in the deck next to the boy's hand. Jaws dropped (minus Marco and Whitebeard) when the huge animal went from glaring up at the mast to snuffling Luffy's hair and sniffing the boy all over.

"Shishishi! I'm fine, I'm fine," Lu giggled, gently pushing the large furred head away from him. Stefan gave a wet lick to the kid's face and stopped his fussing and backed off. The dog still kept an eye on the straw hatted pup and the one above even as he relaxed the muscles in his large body.

Luffy frowned down at the blade before pulling it out of the wood. Knife in hand, he plonked back onto his butt and sat cross-legged once more. A pout was firmly stamped on his face.

Whitebeard raised an eyebrow at the youngster's actions, wondering why the brat wasn't more surprised or upset about the abrupt attack. His white brow rose higher when his dog walked forward to sit directly behind the child, Luffy's back resting against the canine's front, and curled his tail around the front. The other pirates' eyes bugged out when they saw the bushy tail move to cover the kid's entire lap.

Again, how the hell did the tiny shrimp manage to tame that fearsome animal? That dog was famous for hating almost everyone except Pops…and maybe Marco.

Strawhat lifted the blade closer to his face. The phoenix saw it was black in color and had a rounded shape. He wanted to say it was comparable to that of the trio's old symbol, the spade, but not as wide or obviously shaped. The knife was also too small to be a dagger, for even with the handle it was barely five inches long. Marco also noticed that Luffy observed the knife with a look of familiarity.

Twirling the blade around his fingers as he stared at it (stunning some of the watchers and surprising Thatch with the skill), Luffy blandly stated, "That wasn't very nice." He grinned when an idea popped into his head.

"Don't even _think_ about it, Lu." Marco switched from the re-forming frown on the small raven's face to the scowling blond above. / You can practice with Ace but _not_ me. I can't turn to flame or sprout armor at an instant like you two dunderheads. /

Lu cocked his head in silent question as he stared up at Sabo. The blond sighed before an indulgent smile appeared.

Thatch glanced between the two in confusion as a pleased smile broke out across Strawhat's face, which promptly turned into an offended scowl and glared up at his brother. Sabo chuckled and gazed fondly down at the younger pirate. Luffy turned back to the knife in his hands (and that made Marco and Thatch more nervous than they cared to admit), fingering the edges and tip then shooting a dark smirk up at the top hat wearer. Thatch was officially ready to admit he was completely lost as to what was going on (Marco too, from what the cook could tell) when Sabo's expression contorted into a disbelieving glower.

"Not possible," Sabo said with a hard voice. He actually growled when Luffy gave an innocent smile and simply shrugged his shoulders in response before returning his attention to the small knife he was still fingering and playing with.

Sidling over to stand next to Marco, Thatch whispered, "You ever get the feeling someone is having a conversation right in front of you and you aren't aware of it? This is kinda like that except I'm aware of it."

"Thatch." The cook turned to look at his brother, only to take in a familiar bored face which clearly expressed—

"You're an idiot, yoi." That.

"Yeah, well, I know you noticed it too, Bluebird," the Fourth Commander muttered.

Whitebeard's focus shifted from his sons' comments (which he agreed with seeing the two brothers interacting the way they were) to the gentlemanly dressed blond pirate jumping down from the mast. Thatch caught the movement right after Sabo left his little lookout, heart once more in his throat as the teen free-fell to the deck.

Upon landing, he asked the teen, "Can you not just climb down like _normal_ people? Why do you need to either flip about like damned monkeys or drop out of the air like freaking rocks?" Marco's lips twitched when Luffy snickered at Thatch's whiny tone.

Sauntering over to his brother, Sabo coolly replied, "That, good Sir, would oppose the outcome desired by my intentions and therefore renders those insipid methods you suggest obsolete." Whitebeard openly laughed at the stunned faces of his listening children.

Thatch tried to get Marco to translate what the curly-haired teen had said but was dismayed to find the commander quietly chuckling at him. Luffy—who had been patting Stefan and silently telling the dog Sabo hadn't meant any harm—liked Pom-Pom so he decided to take pity on the Human.

"Sabo said 'normal is boring'." The pirates looked over at the grinning child wearing a straw hat. Luffy held up the knife to his brother for inspection without taking his eyes off Pom-Pom, Mango and Captain Banana Mustache.

"You," Thatch pointed at Luffy then at Sabo, "understood all _that_?"

"Nope," Luffy said with a blank face, popping the end of the word.

"Then why did you say that's what he said?" Luffy went back to scratching Stefan's chest.

"'Cause that's what Sabo meant." Marco switched his gaze to the other brother, taking in the darkening scowl as Sabo examined the small blade.

Finished with his examination, Sabo placed the knife back in its holder hidden under the sleeve on his right arm. The blond astounded everyone when he suddenly punched Luffy in the head after knocking the straw hat off to dangle on its string.

"Ye~ow!" Clutching his head, Lu shot the older sibling a hurt and confused look as he whined, "What the hell was that for, meanie?"

"For being a little liar," Sabo retorted.

"But I didn't _lie_. And you made that hurt!" The blonde smacked the finger pointing at him away and glowered at his baby brother.

"You claimed my knife was dull—"

"No! I said it _might_ be getting _less sharp_ —"

"Same thing," Sabo said with a dismissive wave. Thatch was trying to follow along while wondering when exactly this conversation had taken place. "I also didn't hit you that hard, you baby."

"Liar! That stung!" Marco glanced between the arguing pair with curiosity in his sky-blue eyes.

' _That punch looked like it might have concussed a normal person. Perhaps even knock them out, yoi._ ' The First Commander flicked his eyes over the younger boy. ' _But Luffy is complaining that Sabo's blow only "stung"._ '

The Whitebeard Pirates watched as the two brothers got into a wrestling match. Stefan had gotten up and moved back. Now the dog was looking around and taking up the task of keeping guard that Marco and Thatch recognized would've been Ace's role in this situation.

Newgate eyed the two as Sabo trapped Luffy in a headlock (the small raven doing a good job of imitating a wriggling worm in his attempts to get away) and giving the younger a noogie with his right fist. The giant captain narrowed his eyes when his attention was brought to the arm housing the concealed weapon.

"Sabo." Both boys stilled at the deep voice.

Without even looking at the giant Human, Luffy knew the man was upset. He could sense an undercurrent of anger and displeasure surrounding the other, some leaking through in the form of scent. There was another emotion at the periphery but the dragon couldn't place it. Occasionally he sensed the same unnamed emotion coming from Mango and Pom-Pom.

But the Captain wasn't in a good mood like before when Lu approached the three veteran pirates. That made Luffy cuddle closer to Sabo, seeking safety in his brother's arms. Humans could be dangerous when unhappy and this one was very strong even without being a _kýn'vráls_. He didn't believe the man _would_ actually harm them but the change in temperament made the dragon more wary.

' _Would feel better if I knew what that other thing I sense is…_ '

/( _Worry Safe?_ ) Lu, what's wrong? Are you and Sabo okay? What happened?/

Sabo pulled his baby brother tighter to his side. Staring up at the Captain with a guarded look and keeping track of those around them, he answered /Whitebeard is upset about something. Lu doesn't think he will harm us but is unsure about something. Can come but stay hidden in case we need help./

The First and Fourth Commanders were aware of the abrupt change in the scuffling brothers at their father's voice. How the carefree attitude vanished between blinks to be replaced by uncertainty and wary caution. How the blond's arm went from keeping Luffy trapped to being a protective barrier. While he didn't show it, Marco knew Sabo was scouting out possible escape routes and monitoring the pirates watching the scene.

Redirecting his frustration at the possible explanations for the duo's dodgy behavior, the Phoenix-zoan quickly had his ship-brothers scattering from the original group's vicinity.

Meanwhile, Thatch tried to give Pops a look that asked the captain to be careful about his tone. The cook had learned that Sabo was great at reading body language and Luffy seemed to have a sixth sense about how others were feeling. ' _For an idiot, that kid is scary good at reading people._ ' He had a general idea of what his father-figure might be upset about (Marco and he were concerned over the same thing if Thatch was right), but Sabo and Luffy would bolt if they felt the need to.

Stefan didn't appreciate his Alpha frightening the pup and the pup's "litter-mate". After giving the Man a warning look (extending it to the ones standing near the large chair) the dog walked over to the boys. Nuzzling them briefly, he situated himself behind them like before with Luffy. To make sure his leader knew his opinion, Stefan curled his tail around to lay across both pups. Pleasure and pride mixed with his need to protect when Sabo and Luffy shifted closer and leaned back against him.

Seeing the youngsters' reactions—then further surprised when his own dog mad his view known—Whitebeard softened his countenance before trying again. He was glad to find even that small change in his demeanor had the smallest brat losing much of their wariness. Sabo was still intensely focused on Newgate but the captain hoped to alleviate that.

"I apologize if I frightened you, brats."

"Wasn't scared. Not a bit," Luffy muttered, the lie obvious by how he refused to look at the Captain as he said the words. The dragon did relax, however, when he sensed the alpha's sincerity and felt snippets of sadness and regret from the man. Sharing his findings with Sabo, the blond also took on a more relaxed air (but stayed ready to defend them in case it was a trick).

The captain let his features slip to portray a more stern face, though he kept his tone from hardening like before. "Sabo, what I wanted to ask before was why you would throw a dangerous weapon at someone you claim to cherish and call 'baby brother'. From how protective you and Ace are, I find it difficult to believe you would endanger the little brat like that." Thatch and Marco felt a light tingle work up their spines as a feeling of déjà vu overcame them.

"I believe that you are mistaken, Captain Whitebeard, sir. Luffy was never in any danger from myself," was the calm reply.

"But it _was_ you who threw the knife, correct yoi?" Sabo and Luffy nodded.

"At Luffy," Thatch added. Again, both boys nodded. "Why would you purposely aim a knife at _Luffy_!? That's extremely dangerous and he could've been _hurt_!" Cue the baffled looks on the blond and raven's faces.

Raising an eyebrow at the three pirates, Sabo 'helpfully' informed them, "You gentlemen seem to have misunderstood something, as evidenced by Mr. Fourth's previous statement. My _aim_ , otherwise known as intended target, was the exact spot the knife landed: two inches from my brother's hand. If we were back on our old ship, _Wild Card_ , I would have placed the knife a quarter of that distance away from his thumb." Thatch gaped at the teen, incredulous as to what was being said.

Marco's eyes bored into the stone-faced middle brother as Newgate asked, "You are not worried that you might have hurt the brat?" Sabo's eyes darkened at what he believed the Captain to be implying.

Luffy sensed his older sibling's anger. Seeking to calm him, the dragon scooted over to sit in the blond's lap. Sabo smiled at his little brother's concern and worry, though his gaze never left the officers before them.

Despite the warm and loving smile gracing his lips, Sabo's blue eyes retained their dark frigidness. His tone was only a few degrees warmer than the deep sea beneath the ship as he answered, "Ace and I have already imparted this knowledge to the two gentlemen standing at your side, Captain Whitebeard, sir. We would _never_ wish or desire harm to befall our baby brother." Thatch suppressed a shiver as the teen's gaze became even colder. "That you are aware of this and still choose to suggest that my previous actions held the possibility of doing just that is grossly repugnant. _Especially so for one who knows nothing of us_."

Newgate carefully hid his alarm at the sheer volume of venom lacing Sabo's last words. The two commanders weren't so capable, Thatch more so than poker-faced Marco. The cook slumped a tad, breath hitching at Sabo's words and the pain he dimly sensed that laid beneath them. Marco's only slips, indicating his inner thoughts, were the widening of his light blue eyes and thinning of his lips. The first commander fought to keep his muscles from tensing, but let his hands form fists that he hid under folded arms.

During his few visits with the trio, Marco had come to believe that _Ace_ was the one with the majority of anger issues. Sabo's comment neatly blew that idea out of the sea. Apparently, while the freckled fire-user was prone to impulsive rants and actions that stemmed from anger, the middle brother stewed over problems. Marco likened Sabo's hidden rage to an iceberg (oddly fitting with how he acted when angered). Only the tip would float above the surface, leaving the rest submerged. Out of sight until some unlucky soul ran into it.

"Sabo was worried." The older pirates looked down at where the quiet voice had come from.

Luffy stared back at them, glancing from Giant Captain, to Pom-Pom, to Pineapple, then back to the Captain. He had felt their anger rise at hearing Sabo's previous statement but knew the majority wasn't directed at them. That other feeling had also grown, but the name stayed just out of reach so he ignored it for now. These Humans were still very upset over something about what Sabo had done (he was still a little lost but knew it was related to the knife-throwing).

Luffy didn't like that. If he wanted Ace and Sabo to have a chance at gaining a _sídna_ strong enough to protect them, then the alpha and his Commanders had to trust his brothers enough to not question certain things.

"What was that, Luffy?" The dragon glanced at Thatch before taking deep breath and thinking about how he wanted to say what was on his mind.

Making sure he made eye contact with each Human standing in front of him—because he remembered Sabo teaching him that such a thing was important to do when making a serious point—Luffy let them see his puzzlement over their reactions. When he was sure he had their complete attention, Lufffy repeated his words in the same firm tone as before.

"Don't be mad. Sabo was just worried."

"Your brother threw a knife at you because he was worried, yoi," Marco said in a doubtful tone. Thatch was stunned speechless when the kid nodded enthusiastically with a large grin.

"Yeah! Ace and Sabo can be overprojective—"

"It's 'overprotective', Lu," Sabo huffed. A warm smile bloomed and he hugged the teen in his lap when he felt a grateful wave tinged with affection.

"That! So they do things that sometimes upsets other people because _they_ don't know everything is actually fine. We work really, really, really, really, _really_ hard on stuff so we know what does and doesn't hurt. Ace and Sabo would never try to really hurt Luffy. And Sabo only threw his knife because Luffy worried Sabo. So Pineapple-Head, Giant Banana Mustache and Pom-Pom shouldn't be mad at Sab-mff—"

"Hey, Lu? Ever heard of 'breathing'?" The commanders and captain sweatdropped as the boy appeared to pause and actually think over Sabo's words, completely ignoring the hand over his mouth.

"Then what did the brat do that made you throw a knife at him?" Sabo looked up at the owner of the deep voice.

Seeing no judgement in the Captain's gaze, only curiosity with hints of humor alongside something else, he deadpanned, "It was a warning."

"Mff-fu mm oom ffm mfffee." Thatch stared at the wriggling kid then directed his gaze up to an exasperated Sabo.

"Uh… What did he say?"

Luffy yanked down on his brother's hand, freeing his mouth to take in a giant gulp of air. He belted out, "Sabo was being a meanie!"

Rolling his blue eyes, the top hatted blond looked up at the two commanders and Captain. In a weary tone he elaborated, "I prevented Lu from doing something ridiculously imbecilic."

Despite the harsh words, the commanders watched as Sabo pulled Luffy back against him with a gentle look in his eyes. Luffy wriggled a bit before finally settling. Sabo wrapped his arms around the younger boy's middle and rested his chin on the dark head, moving the hat off to the side of his brother's shoulder.

"Soggy blanket," the dragon mumbled and pouted. Sabo thought about the phrase for a second before giving up and deciding Luffy was close enough to the proper wording to not bother with it.

"What did you think your brother was about to do, yoi?"

"My idiot of a precious baby brother here was going to challenge Captain Whitebeard to a fight."

Well… The commanders weren't quite expecting _that_ answer. Though perhaps they should have, considering the expression Luffy had been wearing and who his older brother was. Their captain didn't seem all that surprised so he had probably already guessed the brat's intentions.

"But I'm _booooored_! And Ace gets to fight Giant Old Guy so why can't I?"

"Yes, but what have I told you about Ace and his chosen course of action?"

Sounding like a robot reciting something from memory, Luffy monotonously drawled, "Ace is an impulsive and imprudent imbecile with inane fancies that land his asinine charcoal-ass in one dilemma after another and is not someone whose actions I should strive to emulate until said ash-for-brains acts in a less immature fashion." Marco and Thatch had their jaws hanging open in shock at Strawhat's rant. Even Newgate was surprised by the kid's vocabulary.

"Congratulations, you got it right this time," Sabo smirked, lightly clapping his hands in front of Lu before once more sliding them around his brother's middle.

"He didn't understand a word of that, did he yoi?" A toothy grin met the pineapple-headed blond's question.

"Nope! Well," Sabo considered the little brother sitting in his lap, "maybe a word here and there. Mostly he understands the basic meaning."

"Then what's the point of making him memorize and repeat it?"

"To piss Ace off." Thatch conceded the point hearing that.

* * *

Whitebeard had started telling the boys stories to calm them after riling them up with his questioning. If he wanted these boys to join his crew then they would need to be comfortable enough around him that they would drop their guard and just _be_. Ace, Sabo and Luffy were too young in the captain's mind to have such haunted eyes. Especially Luffy.

He always asked for updates on the brats from his sons and daughters that ran into them. One night Marco had told him of the one time his First Commander asked Luffy about the scar under the child's eye.

The Phoenix-zoan recounted how the little brat's eyes seemed to dull to lifeless pools. The expression on his face fading into an equally inert and apathetic neutrality. How Luffy shrank into himself, the runt's already small form made to look even smaller and frailer, as the tiny black-haired child touched the crescent-shaped scar. In contrast to Luffy's appearance, Marco admitted to almost falling to his ass in shock; claiming that at the time he could practically _feel_ the terrible, raw anguish and sorrow that poured off Strawhat's figure. His son had immediately apologized to the trio—Sabo and Ace having moved the distraught child onto their laps and holding Luffy tightly, alternating trying to kill Marco with their glares and whispering comfort to the littlest brother—and promised to never ask about it again.

Whitebeard's First Mate hadn't been able to get close to the brothers again for almost two days after that. Wishing to avoid the same thing from happening to _him_ after upsetting the younger two of the brother trio, Newgate tried to smooth things over by telling Luffy and Sabo stories of his younger days on the high seas. To the giant captain's great pleasure his peace offering was accepted.

A handful of minutes into his first tale the man caught the forced laxness in Sabo's limbs easing into a more natural state. Luffy lost the wary shadow in his deep browns and looked up at Whitebeard with unbridled curiosity, letting out small chirps and squeaks of awe as the brat listened. An eyebrow rose in mild surprise (though Newgate didn't stop his story) when Stefan shifted to lay down behind the brothers, nudging the two to lean against his flank before re-covering them with his tail.

Marco and Thatch left after another twenty minutes. One to start preparing dinner, the other to do some paperwork.

An hour into Whitebeard's tales, the captain began wondering where Ace had gone. The oldest brother was too protective and guarded to allow the younger two out of sight for very long, so the continued absence worried the captain. Had the hot-headed brat gotten lost or hurt somehow?

Newgate thought he'd hidden his misgivings from sight. Therefore, he was surprised when Luffy suddenly met his eyes for a long second, an odd look in the child's darker pair, before pointedly swiveling them to look up and behind where Whitebeard sat. Without pausing in his current story, the old captain lightly reached out with his haki to the space indicated. A grin broke out (though he made sure to time it with his story to keep from alarming the two brats sitting before him) when Whitebeard sensed Ace hiding atop the wheelhouse.

Close to another hour later (with Newgate wondering why Ace hadn't made his usual reckless charge) a loud, gurgling growl interrupted his latest story.

"Shishi! Oops?" Sabo chuckled as he pat the younger brat's head.

"Come on then, Lu. Let's grab Ace and catch some dinner. I think he's stewed in jealousy long enough, don't you?" The amused smirk on Sabo's face grew, becoming somewhat smug, a second later just as Luffy laughed. Both turning to look up at where Ace was.

A thump was heard and then Newgate saw the freckled teen circling around his seat to join the other two brothers. Luffy, Sabo and Stefan stood up as Ace approached, a scowl on his face. Whitebeard was a little dismayed to see the spark of distrust in the ex-captain's bearing and how Ace kept a wary eye on him.

"I'm not _jealous_ ," Ace muttered.

In spite of his foul expression and tone, the older raven pulled Luffy into his arms; placing the smaller brat's back against his chest and wrapping muscled arms around the brat's upper chest. Fire flickered into being, twining around the runt's arms and rubbing circles on the small stomach. A tender smile appeared on Ace's face when Luffy started giggling at the fire's actions.

"No, not at _all_ ," Sabo drawled with heavy sarcasm. Ace shot a glare at the blond even as a strand of orange fire reached out to coil several times around a blue-sleeved arm.

Stefan apparently wanted some attention as well, for the giant hound butted Ace's side and gave a small demanding whine. Whitebeard didn't even know his dog was _capable_ of making such a plaintive sound. Ace smiled and showed no qualms about unwinding an arm from his baby brother and scratching behind a large ear.

"A~ce, food!"

"Alright, alright." Luffy cheered and shimmied out of Ace's hold and onto the fire-user's back.

As they passed by his seat (Stefan following the trio like he was one of the brothers), Whitebeard saw how Ace made them walk a wider circle around the captain's position than was strictly necessary on their way to the stern deck. Ace kept him in sight until the brothers disappeared around the corner to the stairs.

' _I see. He didn't try for an attack because of how close his brothers were._ '

Though enlightening, the revelation left a dark mass in the pit of Whitebeard's heart. He thought that he'd made it clear he wasn't out to harm the trio and wouldn't stand for any of his crew doing so either. While many of his sons and daughters were upset about Ace's attempts on his life, Newgate had demanded none of his children to raise a hand in retaliation against the brothers.

The behavior of the three, even after so many days aboard his ship, showed they still didn't trust the Whitebeard Pirates to not do something to them. Anger simmered in his gut, for the nth time since he met the unique boys, at what could have caused their pain and deeply-rooted distrust.

* * *

Other than many nasty looks (because Ace was a stubborn git when he set his mind on something) being aimed at the trio, Sabo was very surprised that nothing harmful was done to them by the ship's crew. The fact that some of the enemy pirates (mostly the commanders) tried to peacefully interact with them made him and Ace suspicious. Luffy was, to a relative extent, wary of the strangers' behavior as well (but taking it better than the older brothers).

That nothing was being done against them unsettled Sabo and Ace. After all, Ace was trying to kill their Captain (with much enthusiasm) so why hasn't anyone tried to lynch them in retaliation? Or at the very least try to punish them.

What really started to unnerve Sabo and Ace was how the crew treated Luffy like a wild animal they were trying to get friendly with. They could understand why Marco had done so the first time he tried talking with them in Ace's 'Fire Field'. Then, since it had been successful, it made sense the Zoan would do so again when he came to bring them to their temporary lodgings. Those times the First Division Commander had treated Luffy, and them by extension, more like confused and frightened humans. What had set off warning bells was how Thatch acted as if Luffy truly _was_ an animal, the man being extremely submissive in all his actions at the time.

Somehow, a memo (or something of the sort) had gone around the ship because everyone trying to be friendly with them tried similar tactics. With mixed results.

Mostly, with Sabo and Ace becoming suspicious and tense at the pirates' methods, Luffy would pick up on their uneasiness and react with hostility (giving Ace the excuse to send his flames after people). Sabo brainstormed with Ace to try and make new rules for Luffy to follow while on the ship so that nobody would figure out the brothers' secret. At least, the secret they cared most about.

Over the long week, Luffy found less and less reason to be overly cautious about the Whitebeard Pirates. Sabo had gotten tired of his little brother's pestering to give them a chance to talk one on one (both he and Ace were still against the thought of splitting up while in "enemy territory"). After testing the waters with the Captain and commanders so close, Sabo felt better about the idea of letting one of his brothers out of his sight. Ace took some more convincing but caved in the end after the blond (with a bit of Luffy's help) listed out what has, and hasn't, happened while they were stuck onboard. This included the time Ace had left to go sulk and Sabo and Luffy had spent a whole hour with Whitebeard before Ace showed.

Still, just like back on their own ship, either Ace or Sabo would remain with Lu and have him in sight at all times. The dragon was fine with that idea. Even if he felt that the pirates wouldn't do anything to his brothers, he preferred having one of them near him. Lu found out pretty quickly that unless Stefan or one of his brothers was with him, many of the crew would try to get too close or several would crowd around him.

So yesterday was spent with Sabo keeping Luffy company half the time before switching with Ace. Stefan would find whoever was topside and join them, even trailing and watching Ace as the freckled ex-captain tried again to take Whitebeard's head.

When paired with their baby brother, Ace and Sabo made a point of trying to play with him and keep the rubber idiot from getting into trouble. Easier said than done.

The little raven was getting restless with so little activity and Sabo figured the stress of the new environment was affecting their younger brother more than he let on. "Flight" practice couldn't be held every night and they couldn't really risk letting Luffy run about in his dragon form (Sabo had made Ace aware of the way Marco seemed to scrutinize Lu more than them). Ace and Sabo's attempts to help Luffy manage his needs meant longer nights of sneaking around and more naps during the day.

What further complicated matters, and robbed all three brothers of peaceful rest, were Luffy's bad dreams that had started up again. They'd gone away within the first few days of being on the ship and together, so the older pair were at a loss as to what might be causing them. Lu was confused, too, since he had trouble remembering what the dreams were about with the exception that "they made his heart hurt". Sabo and Ace were just thankful their baby brother wasn't having bad dreams _every_ time he went to sleep.

Still, regardless of dreams and lost sleep, after thirteen days of no extended time in his full dragon form—no, one or two couple-hour baths _didn't count_ since Luffy had to be small and careful about leaving evidence—the teen was starting to get a bit snappy. They never had this problem on the _Wild Card_ because Lu was able to sneak away most nights for a long swim.

Thus today, Sabo had decided to go learn what he could about the orlop deck while Ace was left in charge of Luffy. Vista had gotten to talking with them, sometimes joining in on Thatch's "chats with snacks", and made the offer after learning of Sabo's interest.

Sabo was hoping they could use the deck as an easier means of sneaking Lu out, killing two birds with one stone. Luffy would get to spend time as his full dragon-y self and also get to go fishing (he was a little too skinny for the older pair's comfort).

They'd only done it the once and had nearly been caught when hoisting the Human-form dragon up on a rope from the sea to a gunport in the gun deck. It would be suspicious if the Whitebeards found them lowering or raising Lu to/from the sea since they had confirmed their brother to be Devil Fruit user.

Ever since that night, the three had to rely on fishing using makeshift poles and raiding the ship's food storage. Ace, Sabo and Luffy didn't feel particularly guilty about the raids, justifying it as the stupid 'enemy' crew's fault for kidnapping them in the first place. But Luffy needed to eat more so Sabo set off to see how he could alleviate some of their problems.

* * *

The day went fairly well until Ace's second attempt at Whitebeard's head before the brothers normally disappeared for the night. Officially, it was Attempt #35; Sabo thought the number was a little excessive considering they'd only been on the _Moby Dick_ for the better part of thirteen days.

As Ace already had a narcolepsy attack sometime after lunch (just before Sabo left), the three were hoping Ace would be relatively safe from having another. Therefore, the older pair wouldn't have to worry about leaving Luffy to fend for himself and an unconscious Ace.

The fire-user _did_ let his little brother out of sight when he went to grab the large axe he'd stolen from the training room earlier. It was only for a couple minutes and Lu was tucked away in a cubbyhole they'd found nearby. After retrieving his brother, Ace directed Luffy to the normal spot up on top the wheelhouse before heading off to launch his latest attack on the "bastard Captain".

So that was where Luffy was, several minutes later, waiting for Ace to strike so he could grab his brother and go fishing. ' _Don't see why I'm not allowed to fish by myself. I can swim just fine if I let my tail out._ ' Which was only partially true.

Having his tail out (only) would allow him to maintain enough strength in his mostly Human form to stay afloat long enough for Ace or Sabo to grab him. To actually be capable of swimming, without fear of drowning due to the sea's effect on Devil Fruit eaters, Luffy would need to Shift to one of his more heavily draconic hybrid forms. The very least he needed to escape the draining effects of the water was to be covered in his scales and tail formed (Luffy was hopeless at swimming without it). By that stage, the young dragon would also have his mane running down the center of his back, his ears flatter against his head and more pointed, and hands with claws instead of fingernails.

' _They're probably just mad that I catch bigger food than them_ ,' Luffy pouted. This was also partially true.

Ace and Sabo were disgruntled to discover that, because of whatever weird luck surrounded their baby brother, Luffy had a tendency to hook things that were _much_ stronger than the average sea-going beast. This, unfortunately, often resulted in the small, straw hat wearing teen being yanked into the sea by the thing he had caught. Labeling the phenomenon as a part of some sort of curse that seemed to hang over the dragon, the older brothers had forbade the youngest from ever fishing by himself while in his Human form.

/( _Irritated_ ) You are _not_ fishing without me around, Lu! Just give me a few minutes. Your black hole can wait that long without you starving. /

Luffy pouted. /( _Fine Hurry Hungry Patient_ )/

Laying down on his belly, Lu lazily looked down over the edge to the deck below. Though he couldn't see Ace, he felt his brother's hidden presence somewhere off to the side of the helm. The fire-user was possibly using the small and largely unseen perch above Stefan's doghouse that the dog had pointed out to them. It was only big enough for one person to fit in it but had the perk of keeping someone hidden from view so long as nobody was actively searching out a figure hiding in the shadowed space. Ace's presence was carefully hidden and Lu only knew his brother to be in that spot thanks to their mental bond.

A door opening below caught his attention. Returning his focus to the emerging figures, Luffy caught sight of a pineapple-shaped head and the black-bandana wearing, large Banana Mustache Old Man. The scent of spices and things cooking drew his dark eyes away to an approaching Pom-Pom.

' _Pom-Pom always brings food so maybe he has some._ ' Lu made to get up but remembered Ace said he had to stay "right there". Damn. He laid back down with a displeased huff escaping him.

Finally he sensed Ace was ready to attack. His brother leapt up out of hiding, giant axe beginning its swing aiming for Giant Old Guy's neck. Old Banana Mustache Man was much stronger than Ace so Lu didn't have any doubts that his brother fail in this attack too. Pineapple-Head also seemed to share the same opinion since the guy's bored look never wavered when he caught sight of Ace, though the blue eyes seemed harder. Giant Old Guy did stiffen, however, which caught Luffy's interest.

Giant Banana Mustache Man never really reacted before, beyond a hint of sadness or amusement. But right now the dragon sensed a sliver of anger in the Human that hadn't shown in previous encounters with Ace. Directing his focus back to Mango revealed the same spark of anger swirling around light haired Human.

' _But_ Atce _has attacked the_ kýn'vráls _lots and they never cared. Even used weapons. Why are Captain and Pineapple mad?'_

Luffy was distracted from his pondering of the odd behavior when he sensed Ace's mind being muffled by familiar dark fog creeping across it. Dread filled him. Ace was mid-swing and in the air behind the huge Captain who was getting ready to bat the fire-user away. Helplessness swirled in the dragon's mind as he saw the scene play out even as he scrambled to close the distance between him and Ace.

/( _Panic Bad Helphelphelp! Trouble_ ) _Sávbó_! _Atce_ in danger! _SávbóSávbóSávbó_! /

Launching himself at the group, Lu watched as Giant Old Guy's huge hand connected with Ace's middle. The blow made Ace's mind grow even dimmer as it rapidly lost ground to the invading need for sleep. His brother let go of the axe, the giant weapon sticking in the wood with a 'thunk' as it landed. The force from Old Giant Banana Mustache Man sent Ace careening through the air to ram against the wooden railing that kept those on deck from falling overboard.

Normally, Luffy had no doubt Ace would have been able to catch himself and prevent a fall into the cold water. But he could feel the sleepy haze dragging his brother into unconsciousness, Whitebeard's blow having aided its struggle. The small pirate's mind froze in horrified silence at the macabre sight of his precious big brother toppling limply, like dead doll, over the side of the _Moby Dick_. Down into cold sea that would drag Ace's weakened body to its depths.

Luffy wasn't aware of the scream ringing of his grief, desperation, shock and horror that ripped from his lungs to echo across the ship's deck. He wasn't aware of Sabo calling out him. Trying to calm him, reminding the small teen of his promises to not reveal himself (though he didn't understand or register the words, instinct had him unknowingly obeying the need to keep such promises). Of Sabo saying he was coming to help Lu and Ace. Luffy didn't sense or see the pirates swarming around to see the cause of the commotion on-deck.

The dragon was solely focused on the spot where Ace had vanished over the edge of the rail and his Treasure's fading presence.

* * *

Marco watched Ace rocket into the rail, the impact force splintering the tough Adam's wood and causing several of the stakes connecting the rail's top to the deck shatter completely. Something about the fiery teen's form shouted a warning in his mind but he couldn't identify why. He only realized what was about to happen to Ace a fraction of a second before hell broke loose.

Thatch swore and tore after the teen whose body had just flipped over the edge of the rail. Marco was distracted from the sight of a limp Ace going over the edge when he sensed a chaotic presence closing in on his and Pops' location. Fast.

As if time had slowed to a crawl, he turned to see flash of gold, black, orange and grey land just off to the side of where he stood. Luffy's head was facing the spot where Ace had landed a second prior as the boy landed in crouch. Marco saw the kid's eyes widen (swearing they were a much lighter brown than usual) and the look of horror only grew when Ace made no move to grab the rail and prevent his fall. Luffy shot off in Ace's direction just as the older teen's figure disappeared from sight over the edge, a soul-piercing scream rending the air as he did so.

" _Aaaaaaaatce_!"

The power and depth of emotion contained in Luffy's cry almost knocked the division commander to his knees. He was only vaguely aware of some of his ship-brothers doing just that—likely out of shock, because it was impossible for someone to truly be overwhelmed by a haki-less cry born of emotion. Right?—as Marco was too busy with a different matter.

Snapping out of his warped daze, the phoenix used his speed to race after the small pirate headed for the ship's side. They already had one (probably injured) Devil Fruit user in the deadly ocean, they didn't need a second hammer jumping in. Seeing as Luffy wasn't slowing down (shit the brat was _fast_ ), Marco had no doubt that's what the other's aim was.

He reached and snagged the back of Luffy's orange vest, jerking the kid back just as Thatch leapt over the rail to fetch Ace. Unfortunately, grabbing Luffy meant that Marco was now holding a rapidly growing bundle of anger and desperation. A memory of Thatch's injury, courtesy of the little spitfire in his grasp, came to mind. Gritting his teeth, the First Division Commander was rather thankful for his Fruit's regenerative abilities.

It was still going to hurt if he wasn't careful.

* * *

Luffy hadn't seen the pompadour-sporting cook jump overboard to retrieve his brother. He only saw either his brother's unconscious body slipping over the rail into the water or the spot where Ace _had_ been that was now empty.

Shock stilled his efforts when he felt something grab his shirt and yank Luffy away from his destination. A scent he knew registered with unpleasant memories bare moments later. The dragon reacted with savage force, a light shiver working through him the only sign of his fight to keep from Shifting like he promised. Lu kept his eyes narrowed and avoided letting those near (and holding) him from seeing them clearly; the change in color would allude to what he really was and that went against keeping his promise.

Marco hadn't been prepared for the swiftness of Luffy's response to being held nor the oddness that met his touch upon finally feeling the youth's body. The brat spasmed in the commander's firm grip, muscles contorting in unnerving ways beneath his hands. Snarls and growls escaped Luffy constantly, distorted as the kid made several endeavors to bite him. Marco was about to use haki in an attempt to counteract whatever Fruit-based ability the child had when a disconcerting twist of Luffy's neck enabled sharp teeth to sink into his left bicep.

"Fuck! Stop Luffy, yoi!" The only sign the brat had heard him was a growl that could rival Stefan's on the dog's worst days.

' _NO!'_ Lu wouldn't let go. This Human was trying to keep him away from _Atce_. Again!

The dragon growled a second time at the reminder, feeling his teeth sharpening and biting deeper to hide their change. Marco cursed at the kid's action, seeing his blue flames flickering at the edges of the wound but knowing they were useless unless he got Luffy to let go. The dragon continued to wriggle and growl in the older man's grasp, fighting to get free and go back to accomplishing his desire of rescuing Ace.

The First Division Commander warned away his shipmates, knowing Luffy would probably attack them too if he got loose. Luffy increased his struggles while Marco used haki to try and keep the brat's arms pinned. Blows from strong kicks caused bruises that healed almost instantly on the older pirate. Marco heard Pops call for Jozu as the giant captain came over and he was sure someone had already gone to get Bay and the nurses after Luffy began biting.

"Shit!" Luffy gripped harder at the Human's flesh, a deeper growl gurgling through the blood trickling down his throat. He could feel blood dripping down his front from the wound, the fresh scent cloying at his nose. The dragon shifted his bite, dimly noting how the flesh seemed to close around his teeth and rip anew when he moved.

Marco was getting worried.

Luffy tearing into his arm continuously (and not letting go) meant his powers were not activating to full-effect. His regenerative ability would hopefully keep him from bleeding out but the brat's teeth were doing a number on him and hurt like a bitch!

"Luffy! Ace will be fine, yoi! Promise! Let go," Marco demanded. Lu almost heard him, the sound of his brother's name breaking through the haze of fear and anger. The Phoenix-zoan nodded at Jozu, who had appeared at the edge of the crowd of pirates, when Luffy gave a slightly less menacing growl (Marco thought it sounded more questioning).

Until Luffy glimpsed someone getting closer and reaching out to _touch_ him.

Rational thought lost to the tide of emotions that surged to the forefront of the dragon's mind. The continued dimming of his connection to Ace, presence fading the longer his Treasure stayed in the icy water that was slowly stealing his life, tortured Luffy. Luffy let out another guttural growl, biting down even harder when he saw a figure make a move to come near again. He could barely stand for _this_ Human to be touching him, let alone another.

Marco quickly took a few steps away from his fellow commander and father-figure, grimacing as the writhing runt in his arms shifted sharp teeth to better grip his arm.

"Goddammit, Luffy," Marco spat, wincing as the little shit's thrashing and twisting only worsened the bite. "Jozu, wait yoi. If you get close now I think he might tear my arm off." As if to confirm Marco's theory, Luffy bit down and drove his teeth deeper into the muscle.

The diamond-user stopped his advance, scowling down at the brat clamped firmly onto his brother's limb. Worry and anger laced his expression at Marco's predicament.

Yes, Marco was very aware that the kid was threatening the man holding him if anyone else made to touch Luffy. Both, Marco _and_ Lu, were surprised the dragon hadn't already gone through with the threat. The pain alone would have made the phoenix loosen his grip and let the kid escape.

Despite the emotions, plus the scent and taste of fresh blood, clouding his mind, Luffy faintly felt the desire to not cause harm (or more than he already was) to Marco. There was also a soft voice that sounded familiar and cherished in the back of his head that pleaded with him for the same.

Hoping to get through to the distressed kid again, Marco spoke in a soothing voice, "Luffy, please stop yoi. Thatch went in to get Ace so your brother will be fine." The commander noticed that it was Ace's name which got him a reaction.

Luffy let up on his bite a tiny fraction at the sound. None of the other words made sense but the word/name sounding similar to _fire_ called to him. It wasn't quite right but it was close.

"That's right. Ace yoi-" Marco grit his teeth as Luffy bit down in again in surprise. The commander figured he probably startled the boy out of whatever thoughts his previous words conjured.

Looking up at his father showed Whitebeard had deep concern etched into his features. Marco flicked his eyes over the crowd of pirates, silently asking for someone to disperse the crowd. Luffy was reacting positively to the sound of his brother's name and Marco didn't want a false move by a worried sibling to undo what little progress he'd made.

Jozu caught the request and proceeded to do as he asked. And quietly at that, praise his dear brother. The Third Commander may not be the most subtle or understanding person in the world, but even he knew when a situation required sensitivity. Anyone who didn't follow along was given a reprimanding glare from Pops.

Poor sleep combined with the rush of adrenaline fading made Luffy feel shreds of tiredness at the edges of his mind. It wasn't enough to distract him from the pressure of unfamiliar arms and scent that didn't belong to his _asalkynn_ , however. Those who weren't his brothers only touched to hurt him or trap him. Trapping him ultimately ended in pain of some variety which led Luffy's thoughts back to the act of being touched. He could easily count the number of people (Humans) Lu trusted to touch him without causing pain; but none were here _or_ the bastard currently holding him.

Marco continued whispering Ace's name, adding in Sabo's for good measure, to the boy. He was glad to find Luffy's struggles losing their manic edge though the brat still wouldn't let go of his arm. Knowing Luffy hated being touched (the brat was releasing dark, deep growls almost constantly, but even those were starting to ease in their intensity) the commander tried to keep the contact as impersonal as possible. His arm throbbed like hellfire and his jacket was a goner (the pants and sash, too, if he couldn't get the stain out) but at least the limb was still attached. Marco didn't think Luffy planned on severing it—the commander had no clue how the brat even got his mouth all the way around it, but figured it related to the brat's Devil Fruit since a person's neck shouldn't _twist_ like that either—therefore the earlier implied threat to do so was likely a bluff.

Luffy stilled and ceased growling, causing Marco's eyebrows to migrate north in surprise and stop talking. The commander was sorely disappointed to find the kid still firmly latched onto his poor arm. The dragon ignored everything around him as he searched for what had pierced through the turmoil running rampant in his mind.

'Atce _!'_ Lu could sense his Treasure coming closer, presence no longer in danger of fading! ' _Where is he? Where's Ace?'_ He looked but couldn't find any sight of his brother nor a scent he could track. Still, he could feel Ace getting closer and closer.

Marco eased up on his hold once Luffy stopped struggling but kept his grip firm and enhanced with haki just to be on the safe side. Seeing the kid's head turn a little towards the rail the First Commander also glanced over to find what had caused the sudden stillness. ' _About damn time yoi,'_ the pineapple-head commander thought with relief.

Jozu had put down one of the many rope ladders that were always left near the rails of the ship in case of emergency (or Marco chucked Thatch or Haruta overboard for being idiots). That meant Thatch was coming up with the firecracker in tow.

"Oi, Marco! Get your feathered ass down here! Ace ain't wakin' up and I don't think he's breathing!" Luffy understood _that_!

Marco took advantage of the Luffy's lapse in attention when the kid _finally_ let go of his arm to turn and shout for Ace. Just as the dragon moved to jump from the commander's loosened hold, he found himself being thrown through the air. Marco saw Jozu catch Luffy in a diamond-clad hand, the Third Commander having guessed what the Phoenix-zoan was about to do, before he launched himself over the _Moby_ 's side.

Thatch had an unconscious Ace slung over his shoulder and already partway up the ladder. Transforming his feet to talons, Marco carefully took the freckled teen from the cook and flew back up to the deck. Luffy saw the half-bird, half-man carrying his brother and increased his efforts to get away from the new Human holding him.

Marco gently laid Ace on the ground, noticing a very upset and growling Strawhat unsuccessfully trying to bite Jozu's hand, as the blond searched for a nurse to attend to Ace. Finding one next to Pops (who was dividing his focus between Ace's limp form and the growling wild child) Marco gestured her over. He also found Bay had made it and was examining the sizeable blood stain where he'd been previously standing with an irate kid mauling his arm.

Luffy saw Marco bend down and start pressing on his brother's chest. Anger laced with confusion hit him anew (doubling when he saw the other Human _wearing White_ approaching) and renewed his efforts. The one holding him tried to adjust their grip and Luffy took the opportunity presented to shift his wriggling, noodle-y body and slip out of his vest. The small pirate dodged an attempt by the Human—' _Sparkles_ ,' his mind distantly supplied—and lunged for his brother's figure, determined to get the two _too close_ away from him.

"Dammit! Watch it, Marco!" Said man lifted his head and saw the reason for Jozu's warning. He'd only just started compressions and moved the nurse to take over.

Spreading his arms-turned-wings, Marco hoped to ward the space around Ace from Luffy like he had so many mornings ago. Unfortunately for him, Luffy wasn't going to back down this time.

The dragon had felt those flames licking at the edges of the wound when he was chomping on the man's arm. Those flames were cool, not hot and burning. The blue fire wouldn't hurt Luffy.

Marco read the intent in Luffy's expression. Muttering a curse he grabbed the nurse off Ace and promptly moved them away. He didn't want to get bitten by the spitfire again (it was painful enough the first time) and the nurse would fare even worse than he.

Reaching Ace, Luffy crouched over his brother with his back to the sea and the unwanted Humans before him. Luffy relaxed a fraction at hearing the weak heartbeat but the stillness—' _Not breathing…why not breathing?'_ —bothered him. Marco saw Bay come up next to him and both watched the straw hat wearer cock his head so his ear more directly faced the unconscious teen under him. Luffy frowned when he made out the faint whisper of water in his brother's lungs. Well, that would be easy to fix.

The dragon raised a fist and Marco (swearing he could sense a glimmer of haki) watched the boy give a solid hit to Ace's sternum. Sabo was more practiced at using and controlling _kiré_ , but Luffy knew that even _he_ was at least capable enough with this technique to push some of the bad sea water out. Marco's tension eased when Ace started to cough and hack up water. Luffy, one eye on his brother and the other trained on the Whitebeard Pirates, tilted the older raven onto his side to keep Ace from choking. Catching the strengthening of the fire-user's heartbeat (though he still hadn't woken up) the dragon finally felt the haze of emotions and instinct rattling his mind easing away.

His Treasure was fine for now and would wake up soon. Ace's narcolepsy attacks usually only lasted for a few minutes. Luffy could protect his brother until then.

Marco also began relaxing, letting out a small sigh, when he felt the wildness in Luffy's presence fading; rational thought starting to come back to the dragon. He glanced up at Pops to see how his father had taken everything. The giant man had a worried and concerned look in his eyes as he watched the two brothers.

Whitebeard motioned for his sons and daughters to remain at a distance from Luffy and Ace, the phoenix interpreting the action as a means to allow the distressed boy to calm some before addressing Ace's health. His Captain's eyes hardened into a mild glare just as Marco felt Bay (stupid, stubborn damn _Bay_ ) ignore their father's order. Marco whipped his head around.

The small boy, previously poking at Ace and arranging him more comfortably on the deck, had gone incredibly still. Face tilted down towards his brother, the straw hat's rim hid the kid's eyes but not the tightening lips and clenching jaw muscles.

The scent hit Luffy before he registered someone coming towards him. A _Bad_ scent. One that was associated with memories of being _alone_ and _Atce and Sávbó taken away_. Shaking with something other than the need to Shift, Lu reached a hand out to grasp Ace's wrist furthest from him while pulling his hat further down to better shield his eyes. Marco saw the kid start trembling, fear clogging Luffy's odd scent strong enough for him to smell it even several paces away. Luffy growled as he hauled Ace's body with him closer to the busted rail. Strawhat maneuvered the older teen so that Ace leaned up to lay against the smaller boy's chest, the freckled head nestled and held gently in the crook of Luffy's thin neck.

The dragon growled again at the White Coat. He wouldn't let her take his Treasure away from him! Luffy moved to shield Ace from Bay, twisting his body so that the shoulder Ace wasn't leaning against faced Marco's group and the approaching doctor. Tacky blood from the phoenix commander's wound was smeared across Luffy's front, face and arms and some got on Ace as the kid held him close.

"Oi, Bay! Get away from them, yoi," Marco demanded. Damn the woman for trying to pull rank as ship's Head Nurse to disobey Pops. He heard Bay make a disgruntled huff but thank the heavens she stopped.

"Luffy, right?" The child growled in response, the sound much darker and threatening than before due to the blood staining the kid's skin. "Right. Well, can I look at Ace? I heard he was knocked into the water and swallowed some." Marco sighed as the kid gave a jerky shake of his head.

At least Bay was trying to be nice (though it was a little forced) to the kid. However, he could tell by the increased growling that Luffy wasn't going to cooperate in the slightest.

Bay took a step forward and then another. Voice a little pinched but still sounding like she was trying to be soothing, "Please, Luffy? He wasn't breathing before and I want to check if he's alright."

Clutching his brother more firmly, Luffy snarled, " _NO_! No no no!"

Images of white rooms, white coats, mean Humans, and harsh smells that burned his nose assaulted the dragon's mind. He held tighter to Ace and sought out his brother's mind to wake him up. /( _Panic Fear Scared Needhelp!_ ) _Sávbó_! _Atce_! Helphelphelp! Scary White Coat! Bad Human! Help! / He felt Sabo coming closer but Ace was still locked in sleep. Ace was trying to wake but Luffy sensed it was a real struggle for the fire-user.

"Bay, leave them for now."

"No, Pops! I can already see that the little, wild brat is too skinny and Ace could have head trauma from your damn hit!" Marco glared at his stubborn sister.

"Knock it off, yoi! You're scaring him and if you get any closer he _will_ attack you." Marco paused when he saw the doctor reach a hand into her right pocket. Luffy, catching the motion, bared his teeth and outright hissed at the woman.

"He sounds pissed rather than scared, Marco," Bay replied tersely. "You telling me this brat has no problem facing down Pops, several of our commanders and a ship full of pirates… But he's scared of one, single lady?"

"That does sound a little far-fetched, Marco." Said man shot an irritated glare at Jozu.

Luffy snapped his jaw a couple times as an added warning layered onto his snarls and growls when the damn Human didn't move away. The White Coat was getting too close and he could tell she was holding something in her hand though it was hidden. Luffy made a guttural hiss. He was having a hard time focusing on the _now_ and not _then_. Images from _that time_ superimposed on the view before him. The tiny body shook even harder under the unwanted memories trying to break through.

Marco clenched his fists as he watched the kid squeeze Ace tighter in his thin arms.

"Bay, I know you wish to help them but this is not the way. Marco is correct. I've also made it very clear that you were not to go near them without permission or they came to you." Bay glanced back at their father, hesitation clear in her eyes as she came finally to a halt.

Glancing worriedly at Luffy behind her (noting how the small body was tensing to attack under the tremors wracking it), Marco kept an eye on the runt as he turned an icy glare on his sister. "I _told_ you not to go near them because they seemed to dislike doctors, yoi."

"You _also_ said the three had trust issues and were very _stubborn_ ," Bay huffed, making a pointed flick of her eyes to the growling kid.

"That," he gestured swiftly at Luffy, eliciting a rumbling hiss from the motion, "is—Dammit! Thatch _don't move_!" How could he have forgotten the man wasn't with them yet?

"Huh?" Thatch looked over to see Luffy hunkered down by the rail a few feet from him. "Oh. Shit."

Luffy hissed when he caught the new scent, hating how someone had gotten so close. They watched the dragon try to move further away from them along the bottom of the rail, dragging Ace along. Strawhat gave up after it was clear the awkward maneuvering of his brother's unconscious body made it difficult for Luffy to keep an eye on the pirates near him. Marco raised an eyebrow when the kid's head unexpectedly snapped up and turned to look at the bow.

* * *

Sabo burst through the door that led onto the ship's main deck. Before swordsman on his tail came through after him, Sabo had his pipe out and was already sprinting across the ship to where he sensed his brothers. Growling at having to spend extra time dodging the stunned pirates between him and Luffy, the blond jumped up and ran along the rail. His baby brother's panic pounded against his mental shields; the echoes of the younger begging for his help filtering through in muted tones that wouldn't overwhelm Sabo. Gritting his teeth at Luffy's distress, the blond pushed more _ki_ into his legs to help him go faster.

He saw Thatch bent over some destroyed section of railing looking like he had stopped mid-way to getting on the ship. Captain Whitebeard stood at the backs of a large man Sabo recognized as the grouchy Jozu and Marco. What worried Sabo most, and was the obvious source of the fear plaguing Luffy, was the woman in a long white coat and blue hair that stood near the little dragon.

/Lu!/ The straw-hatted head snapped up and around to look in his direction.

/( _Happy Scared Hope Fear Panic Help? Relief_ )/ Sabo smiled at his baby brother.

He was about to reassure Luffy that everything would be fine when he noticed the White Coat use Lu's lack of attention to try and make a lunging grab for him. Sabo immediately noticed light reflecting off something in her hand. _'Hell no!'_

/Duck, Lu!/ Thank the Four Blues Luffy obeys he and Ace when it counts.

Sabo flicked one of the small knives out of their sheath and into his left hand. He threw it a second after it touched his palm, not caring if his aim was slightly off and the woman lost a few fingers.

The pipe-wielding teen jumped over a surprised Thatch and struck the shocked woman in the gut with a booted foot. Sabo followed through with a spin and landed another kick to the lady's side that sent her to the deck. She moved to get up but he was quick to place a foot firmly in the middle of her back. The tip of his pipe rested lightly on the back of her head, warning her (and the other Whitebeards he knew would be livid over the attack) against making any move against him.

/( _Concern Worry FineSafe_ ) You and Ace alright?/ Though he wanted to ascertain Lu's condition visually, Sabo felt it more prudent to examine the situation at hand before indulging himself.

His knife was sticking out of the deck not too far away and nearby were the shattered remains of a vial, the contents glistening and soaking into the wood beneath the glittering shards. He saw Vista, in the corner of his eye, slowing his rapid pace as he drew even with the group of commanders and Captain to his right. Whitebeard looked down at Vista when the swordsman began to whisper something up to him that Sabo couldn't hear over the blood pounding in his ears.

/( _Relief Scared Safe?_ ) Wouldn't let Bad White Coat get Ace! Not take Ace away! Not hurt. Ace sleepy but waking./ Hiding his relief at Luffy's rushed news, Sabo glared down at the tensing body beneath his heel.

"I would think twice about moving, Ma'am," he said in a chilling voice. He very lightly tapped her head with his unconventional weapon, letting her know the pipe was _not_ an idle threat by any means. "Now, would you be so kind as to explain the reason for approaching my baby brother when he made it _exceptionally_ evident you were _not_ welcome?"

Sabo hoped he wouldn't have to waste time dragging an answer out of the woman. Luffy's anxiety was mounting behind him, the scent that burned his own nose coming off the White Coat causing memories best forgotten to come forth.

Beyond his shields, Sabo felt the younger's encroaching panic attack and worried about it driving the dragon's instincts into overdrive.

"What do you think you're doing, _brat_?" Sabo flicked a chilling stare at Jozu. The large commander gained a mild look of shock and surprise which tipped the blond ex-captain off to the fact his eyes had probably changed to the bluish hue of ancient glacier ice.

It was another change his and Ace's bodies had undergone thanks to receiving a large quantity of Luffy's blood some years back. Though not as extreme as Light's, their eyes would now change hues if they experienced a surge of intense emotion. So far, the only emotion to initiate the change (Sabo's ocean-blue to a freezing glacial-blue, Ace's steely-grey to shining quicksilver) has been anger or rage. Deciding not to try and cover his eyes, thus drawing _more_ attention to color-shift, Sabo hoped that the watching Whitebeards would cast it off as the play of light off his irises. Acting as if nothing were amiss, he glared into the Third Commander's dark eyes.

"Dealing with a clear threat to my brothers, is that not obvious?" Sabo raised an eyebrow when he caught sight of the orange garment in the diamond-man's hand. He stiffened when he saw the dark red staining it. "Why do you have Lu's shirt," the scarred blond demanded more than asked, voice frigid and eyes boring into the man with a promise of pain if Sabo didn't like the answer.

"Sabo, it's not—"

"Thatch," he cut the cook off while keeping his gaze trained on the individuals before him, "I would highly recommend not speaking or moving while near Lu right now. Luffy may like you, but he _will_ 'bite' anyone he deems a danger in his current state." The dragon would be upset later if such a thing happened and Sabo didn't want to see that.

"Calm down, yoi. The blood's mine, not your brother's," Marco said in an easy tone. Dark met light blue as Sabo took in the mangled jacket sleeve, knee-length pants and light green sash. All stained with blood. He followed the trail as it flowed down to the older pirate's stained pants leg to the splattered sandals. Tracing the red further, Sabo found a large stain of it on the deck several feet behind the First Commander. He brought the focus of his gaze back to the man himself.

' _So he tried to touch Lu._ ' Aloud, Sabo remarked dryly, "Impressive regenerative abilities."

Vista looked around Whitebeard at Marco. Sabo smirked humorlessly when he saw the man's eyes widen at the sight.

"Jeez, the little one did _that?_ It looks worse than what he did to Thatch." Sabo snorted and returned his gaze to the woman beneath him. He pressed down on her back a little harder to let her know he'd caught the subtle shifting of her muscles.

"I believe Ace and I already stated our baby brother hated being touched by strangers."

"But he knows Marco, so he isn't technically a 'stranger'. Right?" Sabo rolled his eyes at Vista's question, secretly thankful that Thatch was keeping quiet and not moving like he'd asked.

He quickly assessed Luffy's mental state and decided he needed to question the doctor at his feet before sending her away. Fast. Lu was inching closer to a panic attack and with Ace still down for the count (and vulnerable) things would get very unpleasant if Luffy snapped.

Voice smooth and rolling like the sea their dragon named him after, Sabo made his tone take on the likeness of the dark, cold depths so everyone would know how serious he was. "Perhaps I shall address that query at a later time. Now, White Coat Ma'am," he tapped her lightly on the head with the pipe, "please cease being stubborn and kindly inform me as to the reason behind your undesirable actions so that I can allow you to be removed from the vicinity."

She huffed before saying, "Stop with damn 'Ma'am' thing, it sounds like an insult to my age. My name is Bay."

"I'd advise against stalling, _Miss_ White Coat," Sabo retorted with a harsher tone. He could feel Luffy slipping under the strain of resurging memories brought on by the doctor's scent. In his confused state, the presence of Humans other than Ace and he would only worsen the looming panic attack. The scent of blood drifted to him and Sabo briefly eyed the stain on Marco's jacket and the floor behind the pirates. ' _That complicates things, too. The fresh taste and scent will make Lu very easy to set off._ '

Luffy needed his help, past memories confusing the dragon about his surroundings and what was going on. But he couldn't turn his back on this person knowing that she might do something to make a bad situation worse.

"Now you just sound like a patronizing dick."

Sabo felt his mood souring further at the White Coat's obstinacy. A sense of relief hit him when Sabo realized he could sense Ace was close to awareness. /( _Urgent Quick Need_ ) Calm Lu down! Help Lu!/

"Bay, please stop being an ass and answer Sabo. Luffy isn't looking very good," Vista said. Sabo was grateful the man wanted to help, but Lu 'not being very good' sailed a while ago. It was going to be hell keeping him from panicking and lashing out.

But of course, against the brothers' luck, the shit storm did come.

"Dammit, Bay! We get you're upset a kid got the drop on you but-oomph!" Sabo twisted around at the sound of Thatch's voice and a loud crack.

The railing Thatch had been leaning on finally failed, crumbling under the combination of the man's weight and damage inflicted by Ace's collision with it. Thatch flopped gracelessly onto the deck with a garbled curse. Bracing himself, Thatch moved to get up from the wooden ruins and was completely unaware of the danger he was now in. The sudden noise and movement had startled Luffy, prompting the dragon to react instinctively. Just as Sabo had feared (and hoped against).

The gentleman-like pirate shoved the female doctor under his foot away before recklessly thrusting _ki_ into his legs and lunged for Thatch, moving the instant he felt the balance in Lu's mind break. Ignoring the shouts and flare of bright blue at the edge of his vision, Sabo barely waited until he was close enough to reach the downed cook to swipe at him with the pipe. He winced as the weapon connected with the man's side, knowing it might leave a nasty bruise and hoping the maneuver wouldn't do worse, but silently cheered when he was able to bat Thatch away several feet. Not far, he didn't want to bust any ribs or do serious injury, but _far enough_ that Luffy's attack would miss him.

Sabo barely touched the wood planks before spinning to face an incoming Human-shaped dragon, swapping the pipe to his left hand as he did so. In a desperate move to calm his little brother down (the younger's mind was in a chaotic whirl of panic, fear and instinct, grating against Sabo's shields), the blond used _kiví_ on his right hand to grab Lu's neck and keep it from stretching. As soon as he seized the dragon (mid-leap) Sabo shoved him to the ground. Luffy's bare back connected solidly with deck and the older brother jumped to sit on Lu's stomach, swinging the arm holding the pipe to rest in a raised position behind his back as a counter-balance to the rapid movement and then as a deterrent to any offers of aid. Though Sabo hated how rough he was with the action, he took some comfort in getting the results he desired.

Luffy's focus was centered on him now instead of those around them, so it would be easier to calm the distressed dragon. He didn't take the growling and snapping to heart since Lu was lost to the panic clouding his little brother's consciousness. Giving a brief squeeze to the dragon's neck in a bid for submission that Lu would instinctively recognize, Sabo bent close so that his hair would shield the bright yellow-gold eyes with their unique slit pupils (blown wide from the adrenaline rushing through Lu's body) from the gathered pirates' sight. The beloved straw hat lay on the ground off to the side where it had fallen and no longer able to do that job.

"Hey hey, it's alright. Everything is fine, Lu," Sabo whispered soothingly, pushing sentiments of calm and love and safety across their bond. " _Atce_ is fine. _Lú_ is fine. _Sávbó_ is fine. We are safe, you are safe. Okay?"

Seeing Luffy's irises darkening and the pupils shrinking (only a little, though it wouldn't matter if he could get his brother calm enough), Sabo leaned back. The dragon stopped struggling and growling as he finally realized who was above him. Luffy was still obviously terrified and confused as to what was happening, but Sabo's gamble paid off. The blond carefully began to move off of his brother, sliding to kneel at his side while keeping Lu between him and the sea.

Until footsteps, combined with the scent of medicine and antiseptic, hit them. Luffy's attention snapped away from Sabo and to the main cause of the boy's panic and Sabo's rising ire.

"Shit! Get the fuck _away_ , asshole," Sabo snarled. He had to drop his pipe to get another hand on his brother who was now _very_ damn determined to go after the source of the scent. Namely the White Coat called 'Bay'. From the sound of the footsteps she had tried to get close to Ace while their backs were turned. Figures. Damn White Coats.

To keep Luffy from lashing out, Sabo pulled the (once more) snapping and snarling kid into his arms. Moving his right hand around to the back of Lu's neck, he shoved his brother's face into the left crook of his own. Sabo barely noticed the small, pale flames licking at his knees and bent legs.

"Well it's about time your toasted ass woke up," he sniped, feeling whispers of fiery warmth wrap around him and Luffy, making their little dragon relax more.

* * *

Their sister's heart was in the right place, but sometimes her methods left much to be desired. Being prevented from doing her inherent duties as a practitioner of medicine also made her very cranky. Unfortunately, a cranky Bay made for an even crankier Sabo. The pirate had been in an extremely bad mood and out for blood courtesy of Bay's actions and unwillingness to cooperate.

Jozu, Marco and Vista had all tensed and began moving to prevent what they thought was an attempt by Sabo to attack Thatch after kicking away Bay. Only Whitebeard had seen the boy's focus land first on the trembling child holding onto the form of the oldest brother like his life depended on it.

Nobody had noticed Luffy stilling for the briefest of seconds before stretching his arms to let Ace down as he simultaneously spun to take on the newest perceived threat. They were too transfixed by Sabo's sudden 'unprovoked attack' on Thatch to see what the young blond pirate had.

To the commanders' collective confusion and frustration, their Captain ordered them to not aid their brother. Jozu huffed but kept his fists layered in diamond. He was going to act whether Pops said otherwise if he felt Thatch was in danger. Marco tensed but lowered his arms and recalled his flames, choosing to believe in Pops' judgement and hoping things weren't what he thought. Vista sheathed his swords for the same reason. The latter two men thinking along the same lines as they watched what they believed was going to be the teen taking out his dark mood on someone who was unprepared to meet with his attack.

Hadn't Sabo just claimed, in a roundabout way, that he didn't wish to see the Fourth Commander get hurt? Why then trade Bay (who had been verging on irritating even Marco with her attitude) for Thatch? Was it because the man, even accidentally, went against what Sabo had asked of him?

No, that reasoning didn't make sense to Marco. Nor did Vista believe that fit with what they knew of Sabo's logic-based personality (albeit an angrier version of it). That was something possibly more fitting of Ace's style.

The First Commander was the first to notice Thatch's proximity to Luffy and wondered if that is what had set off Sabo's charge. Then his eyes landed on the growling brat and half-lidded sky-blues opened fully when he saw the runt turn towards a grumbling Thatch. The trembling body screamed of the desire and drive to harm his fellow commander. Luffy snarled and lunged and Marco knew he wouldn't be able to get to his brother in time.

"Thatch yoi!"

Vista and Jozu moved to block Sabo from their brother when they saw the pipe-wielder aim a swing at the Fourth's unguarded flank. Thatch himself was too preoccupied by the shocking sight of a wild, snarling Luffy headed right for him to see the pipe descending in an arc towards his ribs. He grunted as metal met wet-clothed flesh, feeling like at least one rib was definitely worse for wear. The four other Whitebeard Pirates (including Newgate) were stunned when Sabo's blow knocked Thatch towards Jozu, landing the chef at the feet of his baffled larger brother.

Sabo's snatching Luffy midair and then forcing the small pirate to the deck an instant later floored them.

Vista never thought the teen would ever be so rough with the little one, considering he and Ace acted so gently and affectionately towards the child. Jozu helped up a wheezing and wincing Thatch in time to see the blond manhandle his little brother into submission. Whitebeard frowned at the display but chose to remain silent. The blond brat had a good look of determination and, underneath the roughness, the captain could see the care Sabo took in his actions to not hurt Luffy.

Thatch sighed in relief when he heard the constant growling fade to silence and the flailing limbs that beat at Sabo and the deck go lax. Sabo kept whispering to Luffy, though not even Marco could pick up what was being said.

Vista and Whitebeard glared at Bay, soon joined by the other commanders present, when the stubborn doctor made a go for Ace to check his condition. Her movement didn't go unnoticed by the two brothers and Marco muttered some very unflattering words about his sister and timing when he saw Luffy act up. Even before the shouted demand for them to stay back, the Phoenix-zoan had already grabbed the irate doctor and pulled her away. The First Division Commander also spared a half-second to take in the odd blue hue of Sabo's eyes before they returned to Strawhat's figure.

Everyone held their breath, Bay included, when they saw Sabo take the 'feral' child's face and press it to his neck. Marco and Thatch were all too aware of just how much damage the brat's teeth could inflict on soft flesh. Bay choked on the thought that she might've accidentally signed for the blond shit's death in her overzealous need to assess Ace's health (who she was still worried about because the freckled hothead should've woken up by _now_ ).

So it was a relief to all when Luffy started to calm down again (without taking a chunk out of his brother's neck or shoulder) and they saw Ace's fire surge out along the ground near his stirring form. Marco noted how the fire paused when it initially came upon Sabo's legs before jumping up to coil around the two younger brothers. The fire-user himself only opened his eyes to look around blearily after the blond commented on his state of consciousness.

"Who hurt Lu," Ace demanded looking between the gathered Whitebeard Pirates. He could smell blood, lots of it, though he couldn't differentiate who it belonged to like Luffy'd be able to.

Jozu crossed his arms at the older teen's tone and implication. "What makes you think _we_ hurt him?"

Whitebeard also caught the fire-brat's eyes slowly change to a silvery grey, the color brightening some as the younger pirate responded to his son's question.

"Gee, Mr. Sparkles, I dunno. Maybe because one of my brothers is pissed, the other's scared as shit and I smell fuckin' _blood_ ," was the sneered response. Ace sat up and looked over at where his brothers were. /( _Concern WorryConfused_ )/

Sabo removed his hand from the back of Lu's neck to gently card his fingers through the soft, tussled black locks. His legs were starting to ache from the overuse of _ki_ in them, stinging pings already shooting up and down them. Motioning Ace over, they used the guise of checking Luffy to physically touch so Sabo could relate what he'd seen and found out to Ace. The fire-user grimaced when Sabo mentioned the fact Ace was also smeared with blood. As the situation sank in, Ace's ire slowly faded more towards concern and his eyes shifted back to their more usual deep grey.

Thatch threw out a hand, wincing as the motion jarred what he knew was going to be a nasty bruise from where Sabo had smacked him, and waved to indicate denial of Ace's assumption.

"Wait, wait! That's not what happened at all!" Ace barely heard, too busy 'listening' to what his blond brother was saying. "We did _not_ attack and/or _hurt_ Little Luffy. The only ones who got injured were me and the featherhead. And maybe Bay," he added giving a curious look over at his sister.

Sabo glanced up to see the White Coat woman standing slightly behind the Captain. When he saw her shake her head in answer to Thatch's implied question he commented with a deceptively blithe tone, "What do you know, I have better aim than I thought."

Jozu glowered at the little liar. ' _He's disappointed his knife didn't wound her._ '

Switching his gaze from where Sabo had pointed out the pool of blood to Marco's shredded jacket, Ace raised an eyebrow at the lack of visible injury. "So the peacock can heal? Too bad, we coulda called him 'Stumpy'."

Whitebeard narrowed his eyes at the brat's words. Opening his mouth to berate the upstart fire-user, he was cut-off by Sabo's hand reaching over and smacking the back of his older brother's head. "Not now, ash-for-brains. We're _lucky_ the guy has regenerative abilities, otherwise Lu would be worse. Is that lady still here?" The last bit was said louder as it was addressed to the staring pirates.

Steel grey searched the group to find the woman in question. Ace's eyes hardened when he sighted Bay, flicking them over to the remains of what had obviously been a syringe, then back to the doctor in her lab coat. Thatch flinched at the fury smoldering in the raven's face.

" _You_." Fire bubbled to life across the teen's shoulders and rippled in small waves on the deck around the three brothers. A rolling rumble echoed in his chest as Ace growled, "What were you going to do to my _baby brother_?" Bay gulped but refrained from taking a step back in the presence of the ex-captain's rage and suddenly burning silvery eyes.

Marco moved to shield her from Ace's view just as Sabo gripped his elder brother's arm in warning, completely unperturbed by the fire coating the limb. Vista moved away from the stand-off when he noticed a couple things, hoping that his idea would be able to salvage the situation some now that it had progressed this far.

"Captain Whitebeard, sir." Newgate looked down at the blond teen and waited for him to continue. "Before my dear brother Ace does something impulsive or our baby brother has another panic attack, could you remove Miss White Coat from the vicinity?"

It wasn't a request. Sabo's eyes were as hard and filled with distrust and loathing as Ace's, both pairs shining bright in their odd hues—Marco was tempted to blame the odd changing colors of the two's eyes on the shifting light but wasn't too certain of that conclusion. Whitebeard turned his gaze to Bay, silently telling her to do as the teens asked. Whitey Bay stiffened and a defiant look entered her eyes.

"Pops—"

"Listen to your Captain." Newgate returned his focus to the trio as Thatch, Bay, Jozu and a returning Vista all looked at a very tense Marco. The phoenix didn't take his own sympathetic eyes off the small boy in Sabo's arms to meet their questing gazes.

Drawing herself to her full height, Bay ground out, "As a doctor, it is my duty to see to the health of all those on this ship! That includes—"

"Don't 'doctors' also take an oath to 'do no harm' or something of that nature?" Bay was taken aback by the mocking tone in Sabo's voice. He raised dark blues to meet her shocked face. Flicking a new knife into his hand from a hidden sheath he continued, "Your very presence is causing emotional harm to our baby brother. I suggest that you not disobey your Captain again, _Miss_." That sentence had everyone (bar Whitebeard and Marco who'd already noticed) looking down at Luffy.

The boy was holding onto Sabo's jacket with a white-knuckled hand, the other gripping Ace's yellow shirt in the same manner and trying to pull the older teen closer. Ace obliged, scooting over and rubbing a hand up and down Luffy's bare back. He placed his other hand on Lu's right shoulder, kneading the tense muscles and projecting calm, soothing thoughts alongside Sabo. Luffy's head had moved from the juncture of the blond's neck and shoulder to lay right over where Sabo's heart beat in his chest.

Bay faltered when she realized she could hear faint whimpers coming from the youngest brother. Looking closer the commanders and doctor saw Luffy was trembling, a larger tremor wracking the thin body every couple of heartbeats. They hadn't noticed because of how the shirtless kid kept trying to move further into his brother's protective arms, as if he wouldn't be happy until he could crawl inside the other's body.

Ace removed his hand from Luffy's shoulder to grab the smaller hand hanging onto his shirt. Lu took it and drew both to his chest, pinning Ace's hand between the younger raven's and Sabo's chest. A pointed glare from Sabo had Bay shakily nodding and making a hasty retreat, regret hanging off her like a heavy shawl.

The remaining pirates saw Luffy's body ease its stiffened muscles almost instantly after her departure. Unfortunately, he continued to let out small whimpers and refused to move from his position on Sabo's lap. Sabo carefully maneuvered the knife back under his sleeve into its sheath, trying not to jostle Lu too much or accidentally cut himself; the scent of _his_ blood would only throw the dragon back into a fit right now.

"Luffy…" Vista frowned at the flinch in the small back that was smeared with blood, hating the tiny sob the boy let out when Ace spoke.

Luffy tried to bury his face further into Sabo's chest at Ace's quiet voice, straining closer to the solidness of his Treasure's physical form. Both his brothers were trying to emit only feelings of comfort and safety but he could feel dredges of the anger and confusion coloring their scent. He was afraid and wary and so, so, so muddled as he fought against the horrid memories trying to drag him down. Luffy clung to Sabo tighter as he squeezed Ace's hand; using their physical selves to try and keep him _here_ and not lost in the storm swirling in his mind. The freckled raven winced at the pressure but didn't pull away. Sabo was just grateful that Lu was finally responding to their efforts.

/( _FearPanicScared Fine?Safe? Help_ )/

Ace leant down and nuzzled his littlest brother's head as Sabo held the boy against him even tighter, skimming wary blue eyes over the five older pirates watching. Thatch hoped that Bay's stubborn stint hadn't broken what small trust they'd garnered from the trio.

He and Marco, and now Vista (thanks to him accompanying Thatch more often), expected the behavior and saw it as typical. What they didn't like was how closed off Sabo and Ace were again; similar to the first several days aboard the ship when the brothers had the mindset _nobody_ was even remotely trustworthy. As the two relied on Luffy to make the calls on who could come near, Marco fervently wished that his own action of grabbing the boy hadn't ousted the First Commander from the tiny circle of Whitebeards the three would willingly communicate with.

"You're fine, Light. It's okay. We're safe," Ace murmured against Lu's head. Marco's lips twitched down at the corners, barely catching the words.

/( _Safe?Fine? ScaredConfusedHurt Where?_ )/ Luffy let out a strangled, wet sigh and Jozu was struck by the image of a teary-eyed little boy.

It was odd but he felt that the runty imp shouldn't look like that. A memory of the mischievous expression and dark eyes dancing with mirth came unbidden to mind. ' _Imp definitely looks better when he is up to something_ ,' the large man thought; even if that "something" should end with Jozu getting embarrassed.

"Tha's right, Lu," Ace said, trying to push every ounce of calm he could into his voice.

Sabo bent lower to place his mouth near Luffy's ear as Ace switched roles with him seamlessly. "White Coat is gone, Luffy. She can't hurt you or us if she isn't here, right?"

/… _Atce_ safe?  ( _Protect Shield Scared_ ) White Coat after _Atce_. Wanted to take away! / Luffy gave a shuddery sob and increased the strength of his grip on Sabo and Ace.

He couldn't tell if the smell of blood and medicine was real or just phantoms of his mind. The dragon wanted to have his tail and wings out to wrap his Treasures closer to him but he could vaguely sense Others around them and Shifting was a no-no when Others were near.

Sabo smiled at his little brother. /( _Brave Good Safe Love_ )/ Aloud he said gently, "Yeah, our Fire is safe. You did a good job and were very brave. White Coat didn't take him. You can feel he's right here, right? No one took your Treasure, Lu." Luffy made a couple tiny, jerky nods at Sabo's words.

With the Bad Scent fading away on the approaching night's wind, Luffy's mind started to calm some. The closeness and scents of his brothers also helped to chase away the dark recollections trying to rise up and claw at him.

/Lu needs to be outside for a while./ Sabo glanced up at Ace pointedly, shifting his gaze to behind the fire-user at the stern deck and back.

Ace shook his head minutely. /No. It's almost dark out and Lu's eyes stand out more./

Ignoring him, Sabo added quietly, "He needs a bath, too." He caught a large white object in his periphery and looked over to see Stefan standing near the door at the helm's base which led to the Commanders' Quarters. /Take Stefan with you to that large bathroom. He'll guard Lu so you can come back for me./

Ace glanced over his shoulder at the door and the dog before giving Sabo a suspicious look. /Why do I need to come back for you…/ Grey eyes narrowed when Sabo flicked guilty blues down at his legs. He glared at the blond. /( _Exasperation_ ) And you call _me_ an impulsive idiot!? /

Sabo snorted and rubbed soothing circles at the nape of Luffy's neck between the younger's shoulder blades. /Because you are! Now hurry up. Lu needs rest./

/He's not staying outside past sunset! What about his eyes? If anyone shines light on them then—/

/( _Exasperated Determined_ ) He can't be in a confined space right now either! And it's been awhile since we got to sit out under the stars. We can wrap him in a blanket if need be, but being outside in the open will calm him faster than anything!/ Sabo glared at Ace, daring him to refute his claims.

The older teen matched Sabo's glare with his own defiant one for a minute or two until he finally relented to his younger sibling's logic. With a disgruntled huff, Ace nodded and the two proceeded to carefully move a distressed, Human-shaped dragon into Ace's arms. Only once did Luffy look at Sabo for a few seconds with tears glistening in his eyes, then up at Ace and over at the door, before finally turning and giving the blond a silent nod. He promptly buried his head in Ace's chest right over the older raven's heart.

Whitebeard silently wondered if the sound comforted the child since he could see Luffy relaxed once his head settled over the area.

When Thatch opened his mouth to speak Sabo shot him a warning glare before turning back to watch Ace carry Luffy inside. Sabo only then noticed that Luffy wasn't wearing his iconic hat.

Searching revealed it to be within arm's reach of him, right where it had landed after getting knocked from off Lu's head. Ready to call Ace back, Sabo looked up to see Stefan hadn't gone inside yet and whistled to get his attention. Jozu's jaw dropped in shock as the fearsome beast glanced their way to find the blond brother beckoning him over while holding the (strangely familiar) hat aloft… And actually trotted eagerly over to the little trickster!

"Hey, bud. Little Lu forgot this so could you bring it to him?" The huge dog sniffed the hat then gently took in it in his mouth. Stefan looked at the grinning teen for a couple seconds before he, too, left to follow Ace. "Thanks, Stefan," Sabo called after the hound.

Jozu's eyes bulged, incredulous at the two's interaction. Vista, also shocked by Stefan's mannerisms, marveled at how the animal treated the three brothers as if they were really part of the dog's pack. Marco, Thatch and Whitebeard weren't quite so surprised considering they had caught the battle-hound lounging around with the three brats when they bothered to stay topside for more than a few minutes.

Didn't mean they weren't stunned like the rest over Stefan acquiescing to Sabo's request, though.

"Now then…" Vista returned his gaze to Sabo, who was looking up at Pops with a wintry smile to match the frost in his voice. "Would you please tell the gunman hiding atop the stairs to the stern deck that if he ever points a gun at either Ace or Luffy again," Sabo flicked his eyes over to where the Sixteenth Division Commander stepped into view at the mentioned location, startling everyone but Whitebeard and Marco. Sabo's arctic smile broadened as he stated matter-of-factly, "I will use his own pistols to shoot a bullet into every one of his joints and then personally sever his spinal cord to paralyze him from the neck down."

Thatch paled at the teen's smooth delivery. Marco's perpetually lazy gaze again widened in shock, taken aback by the normally cool and placid blond's bloodthirsty aura. Newgate's yellow eyes glared at the brat's threat, hearing the seriousness and truth in Sabo's words.

He both hated and commended the blond brat for the display of boldness and devotion. On the one hand, Sabo would make for a fierce member of their family when—once Whitebeard set sights on them, it had truly been a matter of 'when' and not 'if' to the veteran pirate—the brothers took up his mark. However, Newgate had seen the look in Sabo's eyes as those words were shared. There was nothing but tempered absolution in the cold blue depths. A terrible weight settled in the captain's heart.

' _He's done so before._ '

It was likely the same for Ace, too. They _were_ pirates after all. Such a thing would be expected even if they were too young, in Whitebeard's opinion, to experience that. He only hoped this disquieting news didn't hold true for the youngest brat. That one was most definitely too young to experience the weight that came with taking another's life.

Sabo leaned back, bracing his hands against the deck, and idly searched for his hat and Ace's when Whitebeard nodded. The blond was trying to shut away the unsettled sensation brought on by the odd look in the old Captain's eyes. ' _Lu also said something about an unknown feeling he sensed from the man too…_ ' He resolved to talk to his brother more in-depth on the subject later.

Vista shook himself from the frozen stupor Sabo's threat had landed him in and cleared his throat before approaching the sitting teen. Sabo looked up at the man in mild confusion until he sighted the items in the large swordsman's hands.

"Ah, I had been wondering where those went. Thank you, Mr. Fifth Commander," Sabo said with a more genuine smile, taking the proffered black top hat with its blue goggles, orange cowboy hat and black knife from the white gloved hands.

Vista smiled back, a sense of relief washing over him as he felt the icy atmosphere around the teen dissipate. "No problem. By the way, that is an interesting knife you have there. Where did you get it?"

"Thank you, sir. As to where I got it… I am afraid I cannot answer that. It is part of a unique set that was gifted to me some time ago," was the genial reply. "I am not privy to the methods used in their construction nor the materials from which they were crafted." Marco frowned.

' _He's not telling the truth, yoi._ ' There was truth in the words, make no mistake about that, but something in the First's gut told him Sabo wasn't being entirely truthful. ' _I'll ask Vista why he's so interested in the knife later._ ' A look at Thatch showed his brother was also curious as to why the Fifth would show interest in a _throwing knife_ when both were known for their love of _swords_.

"Damn! That's right…" Sabo ran a gloved hand through his golden hair tiredly before looking each of the men before him in the eye. Seeing he had their undivided attention, he looked up at them and stated, "No one is to speak of Luffy's attempt to kill Thatch."

Wait… What!?

" _Kill_ me?" "Kill _him_?"

"Or maim you. However, Luffy _was_ aiming to bite your throat so death is the greater possibility," was the shrugged retort. Thatch stuttered, shocked at Sabo's easy delivery of the dark news.

Marco crossed his arms and carefully watched Sabo picking up the pipe and laying it beside him. The blond teen gently stretched his stinging legs out lay in front of him as he coolly regarded the cook and Jozu.

"You said that your brother liked Thatch and didn't want to hurt him. Why say the opposite and claim that the brat tried to kill my son?"

"Because, had I not interfered when I did, then that is what would have happened." Sabo smirked when he caught Jozu glancing up at where the Sixteenth Commander still stood at the back deck. "No, Mr. Sixteenth Division Commander's shot would not have accomplished anything save for possibly causing injury to a different individual and riling Lu further."

"What happened, yoi?" Everyone looked over at a pensive Marco. Sabo examined the man carefully, wondering if he should divulge what was on the tip of his tongue or not.

It was sensitive information and something these pirates could take advantage of and use against them. Especially Luffy. ' _But, Light wouldn't have allowed us to remain here if he felt these Humans were truly Bad or weren't deserving of a modicum of trust._ ' Aside from some mishaps, most everyone had tried to not pry past what the three had been willing to offer.

"Ace, Luffy and I are not fond of several things," Sabo answered slowly, still mulling over what he should tell and what he shouldn't. He held up a hand to forestall any questions from being blurted out (Thatch looked ready to burst out with something) and pulled a leg up close to his chest. He sat up and laid an arm over the raised knee to lean against (ignoring the shooting pains that fired along the limb's nerves) then continued, "You are already aware of us not being too partial to forced separation. We have also previously expressed our… _dislike_ …of doctors."

"That was more than just some 'dislike' back there, kid," Jozu gruffly broke in. Sabo glared up at the man.

"Kindly refrain from interrupting, _Mr. Sparkles_ ," was the sardonic reply. Sabo returned his focus to Marco. "I would tell you what happened before Miss Nurse appeared but I am not clear on those events and do not wish to make any false assumptions." Marco nodded his understanding. "As I do not have time to go into much detail, I will be succinct with the explanation. While Ace and I share an intense 'dislike' of doctors, Luffy is….more deeply affected by their presence," he stated lowly.

A lead weight settled in their stomachs at those words.

"Are you implying that your brother is—" Sabo cut Vista off in a quiet, heavy voice.

"Borderline phobic. I shall not disclose the reason why, that is none of your concern." Thatch hid the sting of that last sentence away when the dark blue of Sabo's gaze landed on him. "When I got here, Luffy was already on the precipice of having a panic attack. That White Coat's refusal to leave and failed attempt to _jab him with a needle_ ," Sabo growled out, still very pissed over the woman's audacity to attack his baby brother like that. He took a deep breath and tried again in a calmer, although somewhat detached, voice. "Normally when Luffy sees a 'White Coat', as he refers to them, he will run to either I or Ace."

"But Ace was out cold on the ground and you were down in the ship's lower levels with me. Luffy was left to defend himself and his vulnerable brother from someone he thought to be dangerous," the Fifth Commander supplied thoughtfully. Things had escalated so quickly to a bad confrontation that could have easily been avoided if Bay had _listened_ to Pops and backed down the moment Luffy rejected her help.

Sabo nodded in agreement with the man's silent conclusions.

"I reacted the why I did primarily out of anger for what the woman was putting my little brother through. However, a small part was also to show Lu that he was 'safe' because the threat had been 'neutralized'. Unfortunately, Lu was already in a delicate mindset and unable to comprehend what was occurring other than 'a White Coat was trying to hurt him and take Ace'." Sabo paused to let that sink in. He turned to face Thatch for the next part of his explanation. "I requested that you not move or speak because Luffy was rapidly worsening to where he would attack if startled. Due to proximity, you would be the prime target if Lu's attention were drawn to you."

Thatch's eyes widened and a lump formed in his throat as he asked, "Even though he likes me?" Sabo let out a long, tired sigh and shook his head slowly.

"That has nothing to do with it." Now the teen's audience was confused. Sabo felt his lips curve into a bitter smile, "Luffy wouldn't have even known who he was attacking." Horror and grief bloomed on the Fourth's face hearing this.

But there it was. The vivid image of a wild child desperate to protect themselves and one they cared deeply for from a perceived threat. Thatch glumly nodded to show Sabo he understood the statement and request behind it. He wouldn't tell Luffy about the attack against him because the boy probably didn't even remember doing it. Sabo was also silently asking him to not take it personally and he couldn't find fault in the request.

"I apologize for the rough handling, too, but I didn't have much time to come up with a better plan," Sabo added with a pointed gaze at Thatch's bruised side. The cook just grinned and waved off the teen's words, secretly pleased that Sabo cared enough to give an apology in the first place.

"How did you move so fast and what was with the rough handling of the little imp?" Sabo raised an eyebrow at the nickname but found it oddly fitting for how Luffy sometimes acted.

"One, trade secret that I don't particularly feel like sharing at present. Two, that was hardly rough where Lu's concerned." Marco shot a warning look at Jozu to keep the man silent while Sabo gathered his thoughts over how to explain his treatment of Luffy. "I had to put Lu in a position that would center his entire focus on me. The method I used was a gamble to be sure, but, if it worked, would also calm him down the fastest."

"I'm guessing that only you or Ace would be able to get away with pinning the youngest brat like that without injury," Whitebeard threw out. Sabo eyed the man before giving him a hesitant nod.

"Anyone else will end up like Thatch or Marco. I have no doubt that Luffy was still capable of some rational thought whenever Marco had grabbed him because my little brother didn't take his arm off." Sabo gave a pointed look at said commander's unmarred appendage and the shredded sleeve hanging off it. "Otherwise, his regenerative abilities would have been rebuilding him a new one." He turned back to Newgate as he added mildly, "And no, Ace and I do not always come out unscathed when Lu gets like that. We get bruises and some bite marks, but they never puncture the skin. He stops fighting the second he recognizes it's us. Now, I have a…request of sorts."

A curious look entered the aged yellow gaze. "And what is that, brat?"

"That Miss White Coat, and the rest of your medical staff, are to stay far away from my brothers and I. We are fully capable of caring for ourselves, have been for a long while now, and do not require or desire their assistance." Marco frowned even as Pops nodded his assent.

That was when Ace finally came back up from below-deck. He scowled at seeing the kidnapping-pirate-bastards surrounding Sabo and glared at them as he made his way over. Sabo smiled at Ace's prickly attitude, ignoring the baffled looks when Ace reached down and helped him stand up before pulling him onto his older brother's back.

"I don't need a damn piggyback, charcoal brains." Ace snorted as he turned towards the doorway he'd entered with Luffy.

"Then your stupid ass can skip all the way to Lu without a problem?" Sabo muttered something back that the commanders and captain couldn't make out as the pair entered the ship.

* * *

Ace and Sabo were snuggled up against Stefan who was laying against the back wall of the helm. Sabo had one hand rubbing the large head of the animal between the ears and the other arm was draped across Luffy's shoulders to his left. Ace slouched on Luffy's other side with his right arm curled against their little brother's chest and holding the smaller raven's head against his broad shoulder, gently combing fingers through the shaggy hair on the side of Lu's head. Little licks of flame sparked at the fire-user's fingertips as he caressed the younger boy, trailing extra warmth and a pleasant tingling sensation behind the touches.

More fire was snaked around the three's limbs, like it was trying to tie them together. It even danced across Stefan's back in shifting, wavy tendrils as the flame included the protective dog in the brother's intimate moment.

Luffy was snuggled between Sabo and Ace, swaddled amongst the folds of a fluffy blanket from his original nest, with the older pair pressed close on either side of him. He thrummed as he brushed Stefan's big, bushy tail that lay across their laps with one of the homemade brushes, basking in the affection of his precious Treasures and new friend. A long bath in his smallest possible dragon form—which still had him measuring about seven-feet in length, a little over two and a half tall from head to floor, and barely pushing sixty pounds—while wrapped tight in Sabo and Ace's arms had worked wonders. Ace and Sabo grimaced at seeing the tiny form with big amber eyes, still wide with traces of terror, though they had expected it. Luffy didn't always appreciate being coddled by his older brothers but after the run-in with the White Coat it was obvious that's what he needed and wanted.

With comforting smiles the pair obliged, wrapping their tiny dragon in loving arms and whispering promises made years ago all over again. Stefan, ignoring the shock of seeing what the pup _really_ looked like in favor of comforting the little one, sauntered over to nuzzle and groom Lu's mane while Sabo and Ace prepared the bath. During the soak, Luffy haltingly told them of what had happened on deck before Sabo's arrival. The story effectively blew apart what Ace thought had occurred and Sabo's take on the situation; both believing Marco had been injured _after_ Lu stretched and got Ace out of the water by trying to keep the dragon away while Bay checked on Ace.

Afterwards, Sabo had his arms full with a lizard doing an impressive imitation of an octopus while Ace massaged the blond's legs, griping about brothers pushing themselves too far. Sabo had retaliated with calling the older a "hotheaded hypocrite". The crackling glare-off shattered into light chuckles when Lu inquired as to why Sabo was calling Ace a 'hippo'. The image provided by the dragon of Ace's head with a hippo's body and flames flickering around it sent Sabo, still holding Luffy, to the ground on his side laughing hysterically. Ace sputtered comically before shouting indignantly at the laughing brother and trying to correct the puzzled one's misguided understanding.

Bath over, the three crept back to the set of rooms allotted to them by the Whitebeard Pirates to grab a blanket they could cover Luffy with. Stefan stayed close and followed when they snuck over to the rear deck, dropping a brush into Sabo's lap they hadn't noticed the dog carrying after settling. Ace quickly set up a weak field of fire across the stern deck and first few steps down the stairs leading to it. It glowed a dull, translucent purple in the night and would have been all but invisible during the day. Some of it covered the back portion of the wheelhouse's roof too, extending up the structure's corners from the tops of the stairs to connect it with the rest of the sensory flames.

For the next hour, Sabo and Ace quietly sang and told stories to the dragon, Ace adding small shapes and flowing designs made of flame to Luffy's delight. They quickly had him thrumming and softly singing along or adding his own ideas to the tales of adventure the older pair conjured.

* * *

Thatch peaked out across the deck from the partially opened door. Pops had told them to leave the brothers to their own devices after the day's drama. Vista and Jozu had agreed, the former more reluctantly than the latter. Izou mumbled his displeasure at "Blondie's (as the geisha began referring to Sabo a couple weeks ago) attitude" but a stern look from Whitebeard and Marco got the man's quick acceptance of the almost-order. Thatch knew his dressy brother was only hiding his concern behind the affronted front Izou wore—ha ha, get it?—which Pops also easily recognized.

Thatch had left shortly after also saying he would leave the boys be to go check on dinner and help set everything up the cooks on duty that night. On the way to his room, he'd heard Jiru and Fossa complaining about the "trio of rowdy imps" taking over the washroom used by the Commanders. Further questioning revealed that the trio had been in there for over two hours before up and vanishing right as they had given up hope of getting a chance to shower before bed. Fossa needed Jiru's help on a project he was working on with Blamenco when the Sixth Commander had left to start repairs on the ship from the day's "Trials of Assassin Ace".

Both commanders, covered in grease and wood shavings, had been miffed upon discovering _Stefan_ of all things guarding the door and snapping or glaring at anyone who came close. Periodic checks showed no change in guard (and the Fourteenth and Fifteenth had been clueless to the hound's behavior until one of the crew informed them of what had transpired topside). Just as Jiru and Fossa were about to give in and resign themselves to needing a new set of sheets, a final check showed no giant beast barring access to the room. The two mumbled that they were at least thankful the brats hadn't given the dog another bath; it was bad enough cleaning up all the hair the first time around and they didn't want a repeat of the repugnant stench of wet dog (which had taken several days of airing out the room using breath dials to get rid of).

The Fourth Commander let his ship-brothers, clad in only towels, continue on their way as he made a 180-turn to head back to the kitchens. By now Thatch knew enough about the three to realize they all had a large appetite, spending most of the time top-side fishing and occasionally also watching Ace get knocked into various parts of the ship. One brother was always on lookout for the other two and keeping track of them, though Thatch was pleased to note their bodies were looser as they did so compared to the start of their stay. Vista had even stated he'd seen Luffy letting random crew members pass closer to him rather than having them forced into making large detours around to avoid being growled at and have flames chasing after them.

But Jiru and Fossa claimed the ASL Trio had spent the time normally used for a last venture at fishing in the communal washroom. This meant they would be going to bed hungry and Thatch did _not_ approve of that. So long as he was Head Chef of this ship it was his job to make sure all his brothers went to sleep with full stomachs. That included his soon-to-be new little brothers, dammit! Pops would understand him disobeying a stern _request_ (because their father hadn't outright _ordered_ them to leave the trio alone) if it was for a good cause. Right? Besides, he didn't want the little thieves sneaking in and raiding the food stores. He'd yet to catch them in the act but Marco's hint had Thatch face-palming at the obviousness kicking the chef in the ass.

' _That reminds me, I need to tell Pops we need to think about sending a group for a grocery run._ '

Coming back to himself, Thatch made a last check of the area before creeping out onto the deck. The pompadour-styled brunet already tried the brothers' room(s), but when no answer to his knocks came he used haki and found they weren't inside. Now the man hoped to find them somewhere up top because if they weren't here then he would have to give up. There was no chance of finding them if the three had hidden away somewhere in the decks below.

Thatch sometimes joined Haruta on the ASL hunts, at first finding it hilarious how frustrated his (previously) youngest brother got so frustrated over the three eluding him. Haruta wasn't the best at Observation or Armament Haki yet, so Thatch had boasted of offering his services in aiding his fellow mischief-maker. An offer he soon regretted as the lack of success mounted over time. He would sense the presence of the brothers (either all together or in two groups) and lead the search to the flagged area only to find nothing and the presence of the one he'd tracked popping up somewhere else or not at all. If split-up, Thatch also observed that as soon as the one(s) he'd tracked down disappeared then the presence of the other brother(s) vanished almost immediately after as well. It left him wondering if Marco was right in his theory that the trio had some form of haki training.

A sweep of the raised deck above the doors to the Crewmen's Quarters, where he'd come out from, and the figurehead showed no sign of being visited by his quarry. Thatch hefted the large bag of food up higher on his back before starting for the foremast. It was promptly checked off his list and passed up when he sensed one of his own siblings using the crow's nest as they kept watch. That left the mainmast, mizzen, roof of the helm and stern deck. He set off with the stern as his goal, seeing as a lookout was always stationed in one of the crow's nests of the mainmast. Approaching the large, stepped-bowl where Pops' chair sat empty on the opposite, Thatch groaned when a flash of blue from above signaled he'd been discovered.

"Thaaatch…" Said man took a nervous step back from his imposing fellow commander.

"Uh… Ha ha, yo! Fancy seeing you here, featherhead," he said, flexing his hold on the rope-tie of the bag hanging off his shoulder in agitation. "Didn't think you had Watch tonight." Marco's glower deepened.

"I switched yoi."

"You should really think about getting some rest, bro. Peacocks need their beauty sleep otherwise they become grouchy turkeys."

"Pops told you to leave them alone," the pineapple-headed blond sighed, not rising to his brother's bait. Thatch pouted at the failed distraction.

"They didn't eat dinner and Luffy…" Thatch trailed into a mumble as he stared down at the ground. Marco eyed the dejected-looking chef.

He understood the other's need to take care of his siblings and the drive Thatch felt as a chef. Marco's eyes tightened when he recalled how small Strawhat appeared when huddled up against an unconscious Ace. How deceptively skinny the strong body was when he had grabbed and pinned the kid to his front. He understood Thatch's worry because he felt it himself. It was why he had taken over the Watch for the crewman scheduled for that shift.

"Fine yoi," he relented at length. "But not you two." Thatch glanced up at the odd statement before noticing the two figures standing behind the man.

"Why do you two get to go and not us," Izou asked. "Don't bother denying it, you mother hen." Marco's brow twitched at the stupid term but remained silent.

"We will leave if they don't want us there," Vista added quietly. "We're also worried about them, especially the little one."

Marco stared at the three, thinking over how the three enigmatic brats would react to a large group right now. He'd been alert for their presence since he saw them sneaking from the bath. When he sensed them settling on the deck above, Marco also went topside and relieved the one on watch duty. The three were much calmer now and he sometimes heard soft voices coming from them, carried up to the Phoenix-zoan on the wind. It almost sounded like they were singing but he couldn't tell for sure. Marco's sharp eyes also caught the barely-there glow of what had to be Ace's fire spread across the back of the ship.

Thatch shifted impatiently from one foot to the other, the movement snapping Marco back to the three commanders standing before him. He took a last look at their eager faces. At last, he pinched the bridge of his nose and slowly nodded in consent to the request. Thatch beamed, Vista had small smile, Izou wore a triumphant look, and Marco just hoped nothing bad came of this visit.

"They're at the stern," was all the First Commander said before turning and walking to the left set of stairs. The trio were sitting to the right on the other side of the mizzenmast but Marco hoped the greater distance would give the brothers a chance to… ' _Have them agree to see us or give us time to get away from Ace's anger, yoi._ ' With what happened today, it could go either way. Probably the latter now that Marco was thinking it over.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, those who weren't a bird-type Zoan got their first glimpse of the pale, low burning fire.

"They expecting anyone?"

"Ace made it when they reached the deck, yoi. It spreads and draws back randomly but the entire back deck and part of the helm's roof is always covered." Izou 'hmmed' at the response.

"It hasn't burned anything," Vista commented in a questioning tone as he stared up at the top steps.

"Not in the last two hours since Ace made it. Kid's got good control, yoi."

"C'mon you bunch'a chickens! We'll know pretty quick if they don't want to see us." Thatch smirked at the puzzled faces of Izou and Vista (Marco's stayed in a boring fixed expression of boredom).

The geisha commander frowned when Thatch climbed the stairs with heavy steps, growing when Marco and Vista did the same. Vista glanced back and caught the bafflement in his feminine brother's gaze.

"Thatch found Ace, Sabo and Luffy are more relaxed and receptive when you are a little noisy when approaching them," the swordsman stated quietly. "Marco tried it and found they were less shifty during his talks with them, too." Izou nodded at the explanation and clicked his getas against the wood steps with a touch more force.

Marco was naturally silent in his steps. If even he was willing to expend the effort of consciously making his footsteps audible then Izou would too. The gunman paused in his ascent when he caught the gentle tones of a melody.

" _First thing: we make you feel better  
Next stop: we pull it all together  
I'll keep you warm like a sweater  
Take my hand, hold on forever  
Just fall apart if you need to  
I'm here and I won't leave you now  
Don't look down  
Hold on forever~"_

Vista glanced up at the stair's landing, wondering which brother was singing. Marco wondered the same, both he and his inner Phoenix finding the low voice soothing. He didn't think it was Luffy singing, but the sound was too quiet to peg the voice's owner as either Sabo or Ace's.

 _"Lay down all your troubles end to end  
They could reach up to the stars  
So many roads, you don't know where you've been  
But you still know who you are~"_

 _"And if I—"_

Knowing the trio weren't likely paying attention and were distracted, Thatch gave a quick set of raps against the stair wall with his free hand. He shrugged at the glare Izou shot at him when the voice cut off.

The small, lazy purple flames covering the top steps flared to a bright orange, blinding the commanders temporarily. Marco, being closest to them, felt the change in the flame's nature. Where before the purple ones held a sense of neutrality and gave off no heat that he could discern, the orange was opposite. These ones crackled with heat and anger, warning the assembled group from going further unless they wanted to be burned.

"Hey guys! It's Thatch with my bro, Marco, here to see ya." Marco noticed the bright fire dulled somewhat in its intensity and the heat lowered.

The hint of a smile touched his lips. The Phoenix in him preened at the fire's—Ace's—show of acceptance regarding his presence. The fire didn't lower or make room for them to pass though. It didn't take a genius to know the three were waiting to see who else was here with the First and Fourth.

Thatch gestured for Izou and Vista to speak up as the flames marginally brightened, flickering restlessly.

"It's Vista here, as well." The fire grew at his voice, heat increasing as they watched it sway and warp as if it were agitated. Vista let out a breath of relief when Ace's creation settled back down again; happy that the brothers were willing to see him.

As one the identified men turned apprehensive eyes on the last of their group. Izou was also nervous at how he was going to be received. His part in the day's events were a big mark against him (as far as second impressions go) and he wouldn't be surprised if the trio turned them all away if the Sixteenth alone upset them with being here. However, he came here to say something and he would definitely say it before leaving!

"I, Izou, am present—" He gave small yelp as the fire flared to life, glowing a bright yellow and radiating heat. The agitated movements prior to Izou's announcement transformed into a twisting and roiling wall that reached chest-high.

Marco's own fires covered him through reflex, protecting him from the heat and rage emanating from the blaze. Vista side-glanced at the kimono-wearer, seeing the resignation that hinted the other had expected this, as they were faced with the physical manifestation of Ace's anger. Thatch shot worried glances from the fire to Izou.

Reading the look in his brother's eyes, Izou spoke over the crackling fires, "I wanted to apologize for my actions today. In person." They waited with bated breath for Ace's fire to give them some sign of the brothers' thoughts.

Izou made to leave when the flames finally dulled to a less intense orange and shrank to calf-height. The wild waving and tumbling of the flames slowly transitioned to the previous jerky ripples and flickers that belied Ace's tense and wary thoughts.

Blue eyes illuminated by the bright flames, the First Commander reached a hand out to touch his azure flame with Ace's. He hadn't done this since that first day and wondered how the orange fire would react to him. The phoenix inhaled, surprised at the sensation brought on by the fires touching. Thatch, Vista and Izou stood, shocked at their brother's action, as the orange fire shrank a few inches and its agitated flickering calmed. They barely had time to blink before Ace's opinion about the touch was made known.

Orange flared to yellow, strands reaching out to swipe at its Master's offender. Heat made the air heavy as the fire crackled and snapped. Marco quickly yanked his hand away and stepped back. Ace's fire continued to rage for a few moments longer before subsiding again. Marco released his own blue fire as he studied the orange glow, ignoring his brothers' incredulous stares.

Ace's fire fascinated him and his Phoenix. There was so much emotion in them! He had been too overwhelmed that last time he'd touched them to get a clear view of their nature. Now, Marco stared at them with a quiet feeling of awe. Ace was a fire-Logia, a person formed of flame and given the power to control it, according to the book Pops possessed listing many of the world's Devil Fruits and their abilities. The description of Ace's Fruit and his power paled in comparison to the real thing (Marco had made sure to look it up while trying to research possible candidates for Luffy's unknown Fruit).

Thatch cleared his throat, smirking when Marco jolted a fraction and dropped the examination of his hand. The cook couldn't quite be sure due to the lighting, but he thought he could make out a small blush on the blond commander's cheeks. He vowed to pester his brother over the topic. Later. Right now he needed to get the ASL Trio to let them (or at least Thatch) near. Good thing he had food!

"Right… Sorry about that, Mr. Birdy here was just curious and didn't mean anything by it." No change. Damn.

"If you don't want to see us we will leave upon your request. We just wished to speak with you, even briefly, to ask a few things." Vista paused and added, "You don't have to answer anything that you do not wish to."

"I heard you skipped out on dinner." Thatch and Marco grinned when the saw the flames twitch. "Therefore, I, Thatch the Mighty, have brought the awesome gift of food!" Izou snorted at the chef's antics while Vista grinned and chuckled. Marco sighed and shook his head.

A bright grin lit his face when the fire, after flickering and waving more agitatedly for a few moments, settled to a dimmer orange and receded like backwards flowing water. Izou stared at the sight alongside Vista. Marco and Thatch, having already seen similar acts, finished the ascent with the two trailing after them. Vista saw how the flames now made a barrier connecting the back edge of the wheelhouse to the half-wall that acted as a guardrail surrounding the back deck.

Seeing no opening, and not doubting he would be burned upon touching them due to the heat clearly being emitted by the fire, Izou gave Thatch a pointed look. "What now?"

Thatch couldn't help the shitty grin that bloomed at seeing his brother disgruntled and out of his depth. Izou took great pleasure and care in always looking his best and a good reader of other's body-language. To see the man so out of sorts where the Trio was involved was very humorous to the chef.

Vista took pity on the gunman seeing Thatch wasn't going to be of help. "Remove your weapons. They won't let you close otherwise and Ace might accidentally ignite the powder in your bullets."

Thatch pouted but nodded and showed the gun-toting geisha where the cook usually placed his blades. Vista also removed his pair and set them next to Thatch's smaller swords and Izou's prized flint-lock pistols, shutting the door to the wheelhouse behind him. Ace's flames flickered and flared slightly (like a final warning to Izou's mind), then resumed their previous mild and purple-colored state.

Now, Thatch could admit to being out of _his_ depth with the three brothers.

The four Whitebeards stared at the small flames blanketing the area, perplexed as to their next course of action. No pathway had opened through the ankle-high fire despite following the established routine.

' _Could they still be wary of so many of us coming at once? Or does Ace and Sabo not want Izou to come after all, yoi._ '

Thatch breathed a sigh of relief when the flames finally opened and separated, clearing a space for them to walk single-file. Thatch smiled and set off, taking point and followed by Vista then Izou. Marco went last to make sure Ace didn't try to singe an unsuspecting Izou. The path continued until it stopped several paces away from the lounging brothers.

The first sight of the trio was blocked by a large, fluffy and white mass. Marco hadn't expected to see Stefan with the brothers, thinking the hound was laying at the foot of Pops' bed tonight since it hadn't been in the doghouse at the bottom of the stairs. The four were doubly shocked to see said dog calmly laying amongst purple fire with ropes of soft orange twisting along his back.

Similar ropes shifted lazily amongst the three bodies snuggled against Stefan's flank. Vista would have thought them to be tied together if the fire weren't so intangible. While they had all seen how Ace's fire often wound around a limb or other body part of Sabo and Luffy, seeing it at night made the flames seem more solid. As the older pair were currently staring at the four commanders (or glaring when looking at Izou), that meant the fuzzy green and blue bundle nestled between them was Luffy.

As Vista, Thatch and Izou took in the Trio and dog, Marco stared thoughtfully at the flames by his feet. For the past couple of weeks they had been trying to get the boys to open up and drop their incessant guard. As a sign of trust, Whitebeard let the three roam free about the ship and do what they wished. He had stated they were guests and to be treated accordingly, leaving the command that Ace, Sabo and Luffy weren't to be harmed unspoken. However, no matter how relaxed they had become since the beginning, all three remained primed to defend themselves at a moment's notice. It didn't escape Marco that every time a person approached the trio they had to give their word to not harm the brothers or do something that was disliked. Even Thatch had to make such a promise every visit.

' _But that's the problem yoi!'_ The phoenix glanced from the content large dog to the small blaze surrounding him that layered the deck. Except for the path that led back to the stairs. Ironically, despite the boys being human Marco thought they acted more like Stefan at times. He just hoped the other three followed his lead.

Vista caught Sabo's gaze shifting to look behind him. Seeing the younger's blue eyes widen a fractional amount and something akin to surprise flash through them, he turned to see what had caught the teen's attention. His expression became a more dramatic copy of Sabo's.

Izou turned as well when Vista stilled, only to gasp out, "Marco, what are you doing?"

Thatch was broken from his musing of how to get closer without getting singed— _'Why did Ace not finish clearing a path for us?'_ —when he saw Ace's head snap up and stare at something behind him. He heard Izou's astonished tone before he registered what he was seeing.

Marco was calmly standing outside the fire-free area acting like his usual nonchalant and boring self. "Standing, yoi," was the flat response.

Thatch stared at the Zoan's feet, knowing he was missing something important. Then it hit him. Of course! ' _There's no blue flames. Marco isn't being hurt standing in them!'_

 _"Why would Ace ever burn us?"_

Sabo had even said it and they have been staring at the evidence for so long they had overlooked the obviousness of it. Yeah, Marco was right in that Ace had good control over his power, but it wasn't _just that_.

Vista looked back at Thatch when he heard the man let out an "Ah." Izou stared, dumbfounded, as the oaf actually _stepped into the purple fire_. He was going to be burned! Marco was okay since he had already shown his Phoenix's flames could push back Ace's fire and prevent the man from being burned. Thatch _couldn't_. Wait. Why wasn't their brother getting his feet roasted?

The only thing Vista saw was a small flash of muted orange as the Fourth Commander stepped out onto the fire surrounding them. The burst of new color quickly faded back to purple after a couple blinks. While Izou and Vista were struck speechless, Thatch threw a pleased grin at the shocked freckled and blond teens.

"Why didn't you just say 'come on over' instead of leaving us guessing?" Thatch kept his tone light and jovial as he crossed the flame-covered distance to sit in front of Ace and Sabo like he normally did. Ace scowled in displeasure but the cook was happy to find the fire under his feet never changed. Pulling a meager assortment of the sack's contents out for himself, Thatch added jokingly, "Though I admit striking Iz speechless is deserving of an award." Sabo shot a nasty glare at said gunman as he pulled the bundle that was Luffy closer.

"It would only be a quarter the size of the one for whoever manages to make _you_ speechless, yoi," the First Commander remarked as he ambled over to sit on the other side of Thatch and closer to Sabo. Both men wore genuine smiles (Marco's less noticeable) when they heard Luffy giggle from the swath of fluffy fabric at Marco's comment.

Vista stared at the purple fire for another couple of seconds before deciding to follow his siblings' lead. Ace was still unhappy with them (that wasn't anything new, really) but had yet to burn the two commanders sitting and chatting in the kid's fire. Pretending the fire wasn't really there, Vista walked over to sit near Ace. He sat down a couple feet behind Thatch when he noticed a bloom of brighter orange in the spot he was about to step next.

Izou went to take a step but quickly pulled his sandaled foot back when the fire changed from purple to yellow/orange. A check behind revealed the flame-free path no longer existed and the knee-high blaze surrounding him on all sides. If he moved, his kimono would be close enough for the heat of the fire to begin burning it.

The three seated commanders stiffened at seeing their brother in trouble. Marco glanced out of the corner of a blue eye to see Ace wasn't even looking at Izou, instead trying to wrestle with the blanket Luffy was wrapped in. Turning his head a little more, the pineapple-blond found only Sabo aiming a deathly cold glare at the man. Izou also noticed the look Blondie was giving him.

The Sixteenth returned it with one showing his sincerity and regret as he said, "I am sorry for pointing a gun at Luffy. Sabo. Ace." When the blond teen tilted his head slightly in the youngest's direction, Izou remembered he didn't want Luffy knowing what he almost did. "I reacted out of habit when I saw my family in trouble and didn't think about who I was aiming at. My apology is also to you, too, Luffy." Marco was close enough to see something in Sabo's eyes shift at the geisha's words.

Thatch and Vista hoped that the apology was accepted or at least Ace didn't try to fry the man. They released their held breath in a relieved sigh when the flames started to slowly settle around Izou.

Marco watched from the corner of his eye as Ace sent a questioning look at Sabo. The blanket bundle between them stirred and rubbed against Sabo. The blue clad gentleman gave a reluctant, brief nod of his head at the silent question.

"I accept your apology, Mr. Sixteenth Commander. But only because Ace and I understand and acknowledge the instinct to protect one's perceived family from hostile forces." In a more serious tone, deep blues made even darker by the night and the firelight making them appear ever more dangerous, Sabo added, "My threat from before isn't idle, however, and I refuse to rescind it." Izou nodded his understanding and the fire turned back to purple after another handful of seconds.

Again, Izou tried to step into them and was happy to find that they didn't burn him, going over to sit by Vista since he didn't think Strawhat would want him around Sabo. Ace had stilled and was staring at them in turns, switching his gaze between the four commanders around them. While they could read wariness and some residual anger in Ace's eyes, Sabo's had closed down to show only cool neutrality. The tense atmosphere was broken when two skinny arms finally broke free from their blanket-prison and grabbed the sack of food.

Thatch smiled at the excited little chirp Luffy made as he dug through the sack. Marco noted how the blanket completely covered the boy and how Ace had managed to make a small hood of sorts around the youngest brother's head. Flames moved away from the open area, casting where Luffy's face would have been in total shadow. Hands reached into the sack and pulled out different fruits and vegetables which were either given to Sabo or Ace or the item disappeared into the black hole where Luffy's mouth would be.

"Oi, oi, slow down and breathe, Lu." The blanket shifted towards Ace a little.

"But Ace~!" Vista smiled at the pouty whine.

"The food isn't going to run away before you eat it. Relax," Sabo said, patting the top of the blanketed bundle.

Marco took an offered apple from Thatch but paused when he saw how the chef was staring at the boys with a mixture of happiness, pride and confusion. A look down at the deck in front of the man had the phoenix's eyes narrowing in contemplation before suddenly widening as he realized what had gotten to his brother.

' _They started eating before him, yoi._ ' Previously, the trio had always waited for Thatch to take a bite of a few of the different foods he'd brought before starting on the snack themselves. Progress was slow, but Marco was satisfied to see they were making at least _some_ headway with three enigmas.

Ace, Sabo and Luffy (who fed a sandwich he found to Stefan) continued eating in silence until Ace finally broke the awkward tension.

"Why did you save me?"

* * *

 **A/N: Oooooh! Cliff-hanger! Sorry but I don't (currently) plan on making this a common thing. Gives you something to look forward to though, right? And yeah, titles for chapters suck but who cares (I'm claiming not to).**

 **And before anyone asks, yes. There _is_ a reason Luffy, Sabo and Ace refer to Whitebeard as 'Captain' instead of 'captain' when they speak or think about him. Luffy is also starting to understand more of the dynamics of the crew and is going to be referring to the commanders in such a way as well.**

 **Song is "Hold on Forever" by Rob Thomas. It's a really pretty song and I recommend you at least give it a try.**

 **P.S. (Sabo demonstrated one application of _kiví_ when he applied _ki_ to the muscles and bones in his legs, and feet, to greatly increase his speed and leg strength.)**

 **Terms:**

 **Lú —[Ll-oo; like 'sue' but with an 'L' instead of 'S'] General word for 'light', as in: there was a bright light.**

 **Kiré —[Key-ray] Roughly translates to "energy of mind", it is similar to _kiví_ in that _ki_ is gathered into a particular spot of the wielder's body. However, rather than being used to strengthen the area, the wielder then releases the gathered _ki_ in a controlled attack. Careful and long training is required to master this technique, as loss of control over or storing too much _ki_ can destroy the area where it is gathered. Even with their incredible healing rates, Drakkón can be permanently maimed if they don't exercise caution when using _kiré_.**

 **Kyn'sídna —[Kin-seed-nah] Term to represent a Drakkón's 'Home Flight', aka the group of dragons an individual was born in and spent its formative years living and growing up with. Whether the individual stays with the Home Flight or leaves isn't determined until after it becomes an adolescent; unless it is a young _kýn'vráls_ , in which case the individual will always leave to start its own _sídna_.**

 **Sídna —[Seed-nah] Term used for an organized group of Drakkón, consisting of at least two wings' worth in number, and led by an established leader or Alpha. While Humans generally refer to any group of flying dragons as a 'Flight', Drakkón view _sídna_ as a family unit comprised of either individual mated pairs and their offspring and/or individuals bonded as friends. A 'Wing' of dragons consists of a party 4-6 in number, a 'Flight' includes 2-3 (rarely 4) Wings, and a 'Thunder' is roughly equivalent to 4+ Flights.**

 **While primarily nomadic in nature, if a _sídna_ finds an area it is particularly attached to then they'll claim it as part of their territory and defend it as such. Another time a _sídna_ will settle in one spot for a prolonged period is when a mated pair is about to lay eggs (each clutch only having 2-3 eggs, rarely 4 and almost never 5). The family unit will spread out and search for an appropriate nesting area that can supply the group with enough water and food to live comfortably while the hatchlings grow. Depending on the circumstances, a Flight will either wait for the hatchlings to grow big enough to safely travel or for them to become fledglings and start learning to fly.**

 **It goes without saying that, because of Shanks, Luffy views pirate crews as the Human-equivalent of _sídna_.**


	10. Long Nights and Long Talks!

**A/N: Okay, so after the fiasco with Chapter 9 (again, sorry abouts that) here's to hoping that doesn't happen a second time. Considering I am submitting this at home I don't think it will.**

 **Oh yeah! I recently got this PM asking me how I come up with words for the Drakkón language since I claim to have a shit imagination when it comes to names and things like that. Here is my answer: Boggle and spelling mistakes. Seriously. They work** ** _wonders_** **for me!**

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Long Nights and Long Talks! When Steps Forward are Steps Back**

* * *

Thatch choked on the piece of apple he'd been chewing. Marco stilled, face losing the placid look of boredom as he stared at Ace, absolutely floored by the question just asked. Vista and Izou's expressions ranged from disbelief to stunned shock, glancing over at Sabo to see if he had heard the same thing they did.

Luffy continued to shove food in his mouth, slowing down when he realized silence (save for Thatch's hacking as he tried to dislodge the bite of fruit in his throat) had descended over the group. Sabo munched on a couple large carrots while roving a critical gaze over the four commanders. Ace was looking off to the left and away from his brothers and Whitebeards, staring at nothing as he absently bit into an apple of his own.

Thumping a fist into his chest a few times, Thatch was finally able force down the chunk of fruit and breathe again. Turning watery eyes on the fire-laced form of the freckled teen, the Fourth Commander hacked some as he took in fresh gulps of air. Luffy found a canteen in the sack during another dive and tossed it to the chef.

Wetting his lips and achy throat, Thatch gasped with confusion, "Sorry. What did you say?" He— _they_ —had to have heard the kid wrong. Seriously, what sort of question _is_ that?

Ace scowled. His hand holding the apple burst into flame, startling Izou and Vista, and effectively roasted the fruit. The fire-user polished off the fruit, core and all, before facing the cook.

"Why did you save me?" The glow of the firelight danced in the grey eyes boring into Thatch's hazel ones.

Izou marveled at how different it made Ace's normally angry, steel colored orbs look. With the fire reflecting in their depths, it made it easier for the commanders to read the honest confusion swirling there that was absent in Ace's tone.

"Um, why wouldn't I?" Ace slouched against Stefan and resumed glaring off to the side while his purple flames around Thatch started to turn orange and glow brighter.

Sabo glanced over at Ace before going back to pilfering items from the sack Luffy was doing a fantastic job of hogging to himself. Luffy had slowed in his eating frenzy to stare at the flames beneath the cook. At least, that's what Vista _thought_ that's what the Little One was looking at; he couldn't tell for sure because of the blanket hiding his face in shadow.

Thatch finally became aware of Luffy's focus. Then immediately took note of how his ass was _really_ starting to get uncomfortably hot.

"Gaah! Okay, okay! I'll talk! Just 'cause I'm a cook doesn't mean I like to _be cooked_."

Marco was staring at the flames in fascination. They were exceedingly warm (nowhere as bad as Thatch made them out to be) but not _burning_. His brother's skin was red and beginning to sweat from the heat but nothing was actually catching fire. The phoenix glanced up in time to catch Luffy's bundled mass turn slightly towards Ace.

The fire-user huffed and, though they remained orange, the fire around Thatch cooled until it radiated only mild warmth. Ace was still refusing to look at them though.

"In answer to your previous question, Mr. Fourth," everyone turned to face Sabo. The contemplative expression on his face was somewhat ruined by the blond teen's stealing a piece of jerky from Luffy's grasp (causing the kid to bite air instead of the dried meat). Swallowing the stolen jerky, Sabo continued, "There are plenty of reasons for you to _not_ have saved our brother. First, Ace, along with Luffy and I, attacked your ship and crew. Repeatedly. Second, Ace has refused, quite vociferously, every overture Captain Whitebeard has made to join this crew. Third, Ace has performed thirty-five attempts to take your Captain's life. Not including their first encounter, that is. Finally, Ace has attacked several members this crew. Mr. Fourth numerous times in particular."

Izou listened to Sabo's polite rant as his attention was stolen by Luffy using a chunk of jerky to poke Ace in the cheek. He was taken aback when the piece suddenly phased through the side of Freckles' face to get caught between the teen's teeth. Luffy let go once his brother had a hold of the cured meat (sticking out of the cheek with a small line of fire ringed around it) and Ace swirled the food around to stick out the front of his mouth. He promptly sucked the jerky, a rather large piece at that, into his mouth and began chewing. Ignoring the littlest brat's giggle, Izou set his partially-eaten sandwich in its wrapper on the floor in in front of him, feeling a little queasy after Ace's unconscious stunt.

Vista, more focused on Sabo's speech and not seeing what his brother had, frowned as he asked, "So? Why does that make you question our saving Ace when he was drowning?"

Sabo directed a mischievous hint of a smirk at Izou before going back to staring critically at the two swordsmen. "People do not usually go about saving someone who is openly hostile towards them or threatens, _periodically_ , those they value," the blond replied. Behind the neutral face and bland, polite nature of Sabo's words Marco heard the unvoiced suspicion.

Ace's flames around the commanders grew a little brighter and taller. Tints of orange bleeding through the dark purple, the fire's temperature increasing several degrees (but not yet to the point of discomfort) as it flickered and flared irregularly. Even though Ace's face was turned away from him and likely scowling at some random object while trying to ignore the conversation, the teen's own ability had given him away.

' _I'm right, they're looking for motive yoi._ ' Given the way Sabo had laid everything out Marco had to admit it made sense.

"That doesn't mean I could just sit back and watch Ace _drown_!" Thatch felt horrified at such an insinuation. Sure, the Trio were a little prickly around the edges (understatement when it came to the fire-user) and all three had some anger-management issues (again, understatement about Ace). But the more he got to know them, came to _understand_ them, the more Thatch really, _really_ wanted to call them his little brothers! To claim them as _family_ … Without getting a fireball thrown at him by Ace, of course.

Pops and Marco already felt the same as Thatch about the Trio. Vista was quickly getting there thanks to talking more with (read: at) the three brothers. And Izou, once Sabo and Ace got over the man's aiming a gun at Luffy, would quickly be sailing along with the four aforementioned Whitebeards.

"But you were angry." The quiet voice breached the silence that stretched after the Fourth's shocked exclamation.

The older group of pirates turned questioning eyes on Luffy, who was holding an apple in his hands but making no move to eat it. Ace and Sabo tensed at the scrutiny being directed at their younger brother, the former twisting his head enough to put all four commanders in his range of sight.

"Even if they _were_ 'angry', Litt-, sorry… I mean _Luffy_ ," Vista corrected when he saw said boy clench his hand around the apple. Vista tried again, "Even if Ace, or you, or Sabo, made us angry that doesn't mean we would simply leave you to drown." Ace, arms crossed and slouching against Stefan's flank, finished turning his head to completely face the seated commanders.

Confusion ringing in his voice, Luffy repeated, "But you were _angry_." Both brothers scooted even closer to the blanket-bundle, the chords of fire trailing over Luffy growing marginally larger.

The movement caught Marco's interest when he at last saw that the flames roving over Luffy were dimmer than the ones adorning Ace and Sabo.

"Why do you think Thatch was 'angry', ki-," Vista subtly elbowed Izou, "Luffy." Thatch had told Izou about Strawhat's uncanny ability to read others, but he was curious as to how the brat _did it_.

"I _know_ Giant Mustache Old Man, Pineapple-Head and Pom-Pom were angry!" Luffy's covered form shifted uneasily after his outburst. In a quieter voice he said, "I don't know _why_ they were angry at Ace. Ace didn't do anything _new_. But they still got really mad at Ace." Cuddling closer to his brothers and the dog, he let the apple drop out of his hand in favor of latching onto each sibling.

Thatch glanced at the forgotten food worriedly. Luffy had never abandoned something he intended to eat. Except for that one time with Vista, anything _remotely_ food-related the kid got a paw on wound up in his stomach. Bar the times Luffy would hand things to Ace or Sabo until they started rifling through the 'Food Bag', as the Trio came to call it.

"And Giant Banana Mustache hit Ace harder than before," the small raven continued in a shaky voice rife with his distress and confusion. "But Ace didn't _do_ anything! And Mango was really mean and Luffy thinks Sparkles was mean, too!" Luffy hiccupped and burrowed deeper into the large, fuzzy blanket. "Th-then the bad w-White Coat wouldn't _leave_ , an' th-they were _too close_ , an' th-then-n _more_ came and th-they tried to _take Ace_ ag—" A short wall of orange fire surged up between the commanders and brothers.

"Shh, shh… It's okay, Lu," Ace grabbed and gently rocked the shaking form of his little brother, shooting a deathly glare at the commanders. Sabo started rubbing his little brother's back and Stefan lifted his head to look over the boy before making a low whine.

"Ace is here. Sabo is here. Luffy is here," the freckled teen continued whispering, "Ace made all the bad White Coats go away, 'member?" Ace's pinched expression eased so he must have felt Luffy nod.

The fire-user had whispered the last part even quieter than his previous words of comfort. All Vista, Izou and Thatch got was that it had been a question. Marco, however, _did_ hear it.

Sky-blues narrowed a touch at the corners as he mulled over what had (and _hadn't_ ) been said. He was fairly certain Luffy had been about to say "again" before Ace cut him off. But what did Ace mean when he claimed to have made some doctors "go away"? Marco suspected this was a big part of why the three refused medical attention and even avoided the area where the Medical Bay was located. It hadn't escaped the First Commander that no claims of 'ghost' sightings were made in the place's vicinity, despite their cropping up virtually everywhere else on the giant ship.

' _I need to do some digging, yoi._ ' It was very probable he wouldn't find anything useful, but Marco had to check just in case. Ace was a reckless hothead with a touchy switch connected to his temper on a normal day. If Luffy and Sabo were being threatened by something then the phoenix had very little trouble picturing the freckled teen going on a destructive rampage that could rival a pissed drake.

Thatch caught Marco's sharp, inwardly-focused gaze. He turned back to the trio of bothers with the plan to confront the man over whatever he was thinking later. The cook was just in time to see Sabo glance at Ace, an unspoken request in the younger pirate's eyes. Ace looked over at the blond before twisting slightly to stare at the assembled commanders. After a long, hard stare the fire-user turned back to the shaking bundle and scooped it into his arms before standing up. Dousing the wall of orange fire separating the two groups, Ace gave a last glance at his blond brother.

"C'mon, Lu. I think there's a cool constellation we can see over here." Walking around the front of Sabo, who tracked their progress, and passed Stefan's head cocked in question, Ace made for the half-wall near the stairs. "No, Sabo says he wants to talk for a bit."

Izou raised an eyebrow when he saw Ace jump, cradling a large bundle of blanket and brother, onto the rail. He immediately spun and pushed off to leap up to the roof of the wheelhouse. "Is that safe?"

Sabo pat the dog's big head in reassurance as he stiffly answered, "It's fine." Stefan laid his head back down and Sabo returned his attention to them.

Vista looked around, feeling something was different, when he found that most of the purple fire covering the stern deck had retreated to just surrounding where the pirates and dog were seated.

"It's harder to cover a large area if he isn't directly focusing on it." The Fifth Commander nodded to show he heard and brought his gaze back to the blond studying them.

Izou turned to Sabo as he asked, "Why did you not go with them?"

"We want answers but Lu always comes first. Since Ace has a hair-trigger temper when Lu is upset, we decided it would be best for him to calm our little brother while I get answers to our questions." He tilted his head back to look up at the edge of the roof above him for a few seconds before shifting back to them. In a tone that said he was being serious, Sabo probed, "Now, about what Luffy stated previously… Why were you angry?"

Thatch made to answer but Marco cut him off before he could get a syllable out. "If you wouldn't mind, Sabo, I would like to hear _your_ rendition of today's events."

"Hmm… I suppose that is fair," Sabo drawled, thinking over the request. He smirked and stated, "I shall spare the details for _after_ you disclose your side, however."

"How are we to know what happened then?"

"I assure you, Mr. Sixteenth, there will be less explaining required on my end and confusion on yours if we proceed in this manner."

"Thank you, Sabo," Vista said to forestall any other complaints Izou might make. Thatch was splitting his focus between listening to what Sabo might have to say and shooting worried looks in the two raven-haired Devil Fruit users' direction.

Marco noticed a troubled glint enter Sabo's eyes at seeing Thatch's looks. It was wiped clean from sight when the gentleman-like pirate caught the First watching him.

"Right, where to begin? How about…" Sabo trailed off for a second and then continued in a steady voice, "Luffy got worried when he saw Mr. First, Mr. Fourth and Captain Whitebeard become angry at Ace. He launched himself towards the charcoal-brained git just before the Captain hit said git harder than usual. Luffy ran after Ace right as the hothead flipped over the rail and into the water. Against mine and Ace's assumptions prior to Lu's recount, Mr. First caught Lu and Mr. Fourth fetched Ace. Mr. First passed Lu to—I believe my brother thought it was Mr. Sparkles?" Marco nodded. "Then Mr. First came up with Ash-Brain and a White Coat—but not Miss White Coat—went over and Lu escaped from Mr. Sparkles. Lu 'fixed' Ember-Ass, got upset that Miss White Coat refused to vacate the vicinity, and then the drama everyone is aware of occurred."

Izou frowned as he asked, "You aren't going to explain what happened after you came?"

Sabo glared at the geisha and lifted a hand to point his index-finger skyward. Comprehension dawned on Thatch, remembering how Luffy was usually the first to notice someone approaching the trio.

"He can still hear us?" Vista shot a questioning look at his brother. Marco flicked his eyes upwards then resettled them on the smirking, top hat wearing blond.

" _They_ , and yes. Why else would I expend breath on calling Ace names if it wasn't for him being able to hear them?" Reaching over to scratch Stefan's scruff, Sabo dryly stated, "Your turn, Mr. First."

"Luffy was right in guessing we were angry with Ace, yoi. He attacked Pops from behind." Sabo raised an eyebrow but didn't let Marco elaborate, instead gesturing for him to continue. "I'm not sure if Pops hit him harder than usual, but we were all surprised when Ace didn't catch himself on the rail like we thought he would. Thatch ran to get him at the same time I saw Luffy heading to do the same, yoi. I was worried about the kid falling in and grabbed him before he reached the rail."

Izou grimaced at the thought of what he'd seen happen next. The brat had really laid into their oldest brother's arm and it was a lucky thing Marco hadn't had his arm torn off.

"Why did you hand him to Mr. Sparkles?"

"I was trying to calm Luffy down, saying that Ace was okay, yoi," a muscle in Sabo's jaw twitched but Marco went on, "and that you would be there soon. Thatch shouted he needed some help and Luffy let go long enough for me to toss him to Jozu. Ace wasn't breathing when I brought him up so a nurse and I tried to help him. Luffy escaped from Jozu and made for us, yoi. I tried to give the nurse more time to work on Ace by shielding her and Ace with my wings, however your brother ignored them. He punched Ace's chest," Sabo smirked at Marco's puzzled lilt as the commander said that, "causing Ace purge the water in his lungs, yoi."

"Bay ignored Pops' order to wait and let the bra-kid!" Izou rubbed the arm Vista had elbowed, instead of his side, fixing a glare on the larger man. "Let the _kid_ calm down. Our sister tends to be very stubborn when it comes to issues of health of those who call this ship 'home'. She became very cross when Pops kept telling her to leave the kid and Ace be, claiming that it 'was her responsibility' to make sure the two were fine."

"I came up in time to see a very pissed little Luffy hissing and growling at Bay and then you came a minute or so after," Thatch finished, taking the hint to not discuss what had happened to him. Sabo nodded slowly and gained a contemplative look, staring down at the purple fire covering their immediate area.

"Right then, I _would_ like to inquire further about the whole 'attacking the Captain from behind' issue, but I'll wait until Luffy and Ace return."

Izou stared at Sabo. In disbelief of the claim, considering the brat's state prior to leaving, questioned, "You honestly think they'll come back?"

"I know my brothers, thank you," Sabo gritted out, giving the Sixteenth a chilly glare.

"Sorry, we didn't mean to imply that you didn't," Vista hastened to explain. The top hatted blond stared at him now. "It is just that Luffy sounded very upset when he left with Ace is all." Sabo's eyes warmed to a more neutral temperature at hearing the man's words. Though, again, Marco caught the odd glint in the younger pirate's gaze briefly.

Sabo let out a long sigh, taking his hat off to run a hand through his hair. "No, I also apologize. Ace is not the only one who becomes testy over matters regarding Lu." Sabo leaned back against the dog's side and stared at Marco, Thatch, Vista and Izou. He frowned when he looked up at the sky for a long minute.

Baffled, the four Whitebeard Pirates watched as Sabo moved an arm out to thump the flame-coated deck with a closed fist twice. The flames turned a dull orange, flaring once, before settling back to their previous state. The curly-haired blond scowled at the fire and repeated the action only to receive the same response.

"Douse it, you flaming twit! I am _not_ dealing with a cranky shadow _and_ a crabby Sun," Sabo shouted. A tic mark developed on his temple when the flames flared twice and did nothing else. Thatch almost felt bad for Ace when a sly, evil smirk stretched across Sabo's lips. "I will have Lu wake you up in a very special way, _with my help_ , and make you be _It_ first!"

The commanders were stunned by the speed at which the fire vanished. Even the flames surrounding Sabo and Stefan had dissipated; leaving all on the deck awash in solely the light of the clear, moonless night sky.

"Uumm…"

"Later, Mr. Fourth. While Ace is distracting Lu, I would like to continue with our earlier arrangement."

"Alright then, let's hear it." Izou was really starting to find it hard to refute his siblings claims that Ace, Sabo and Luffy _were_ biologically-related (he was still harboring the opinion that their relationship was of a different nature and/or at the very least Sabo was adopted). Sabo's sudden mood-swing—just like the ones he heard were common in Luffy and Ace—hammered another nail into _that_ coffin.

"Very well. First, while I thank you, Mr. First Commander, for trying to look out for Lu's well-being, please note that he had no intentions of _diving into the sea_ after Ace."

Izou and Thatch exchanged puzzled looks, as the geisha asked, "But… Why was he running after Ace then?" Marco sighed and raised a hand to pinch his nose, squeezing his eyes as he did so.

"Because, he was going to use his Devil Fruit powers yoi." Honestly, Marco should have seen it coming with how protective the brothers were. _Of course_ Luffy would jump to Ace's rescue! If he hadn't stopped the brat then it's very likely things wouldn't have gotten so goddamn out of hand!

Their collective attention was brought back to the hatless blond wearing a bitter smile as the younger pirate gave a few mocking claps. "Congratulations, good Sir, you got it in one."

' _Does Sabo have a personality disorder?'_ Vista almost didn't recognize this pirate as the same intelligent and polite-mannered, inquisitive youth he'd taken to tour the orlop deck that day.

"Having said that, Lu has also admitted to Ace and I that he initially overreacted in the face of the situation—though I will not say why—before Miss White Coat entered the scene." Sabo directed a scrutinizing, almost regretful, look at Marco's upper left arm. "Luffy also feels bad about mauling you, Mr. First, and was greatly relieved to hear that you healed with no physical trace of injury. However, Ace and I are irritated to find that our warnings about making unwanted physical contact with Lu went unheeded," he finished with a mild glower.

"So the kid feels bad about Marco but not Thatch? How does that make sense?"

"If you weren't _listening_ , Mr. Sixteenth, I stated before that Luffy wasn't likely aware of his actions. What my brother told you just now and what he told Ace and I earlier confirms this."

Vista glanced up at the very top of the ship's helm. In a saddened voice he inquired, "The Little One truly doesn't remember?"

Sabo dragged a hand down his face tiredly. "Not… _exactly_ …" He cast a weary glance at Thatch as he cautioned, "Luffy has the…impression…he did something bad, so he might be a little flighty around you for a time, Mr. Fourth. I ask that you not hold it against him as Lu is rather fond of you." The cook sighed with a measure of dismay but agreed to Sabo's request.

' _Not like Luffy knew it was me, after all, from what Sabo has explained._ '

"Also, for future reference, Mr. Twitchy Trigger-Finger." Izou was about to protest the name when Sabo steamrolled right over the Sixteenth's initial riposte as he said, "Don't _ever_ point a weapon, gun or otherwise, at Lu when he is on the verge, or in the midst, of a panic attack. Even if he is about to act out like he did today."

"Why, yoi?" Marco didn't ask out of a desire to be rude or put the brothers on the spot. He was just worried about what _might_ happen to his ship-brothers or someone else who may find themselves in that sort of predicament.

Sabo seemed to read this in his expression for there was no malice in his voice as he answered. Only resigned knowing. "Unless the aim is to kill him in one shot or hit, it will only piss Luffy off further and get more people hurt. Though seastone will _weaken_ him, due to being a Devil Fruit user, if it is not a killing blow then you will still have the same problem." The commanders paled at those words.

"Wh-what _is_ Luffy's Devil Fruit?" Thatch was honestly curious, and the stupid bet Haruta was running (plus all the wild stories circulating the ship about alleged antics possibly involving the youngest brother's abilities) was driving him up the wall!

"That I shan't answer, Mr. Fourth. Luffy is enjoying himself playing this guessing game and I do not want to ruin his fun." Sabo donned a mischievous grin before declaring, "Not like we have been actively _hiding_ his abilities or not speaking about them. You are simply not seeing or hearing what is there."

"Two questions, yoi." Sabo nodded and waved for Marco speak. "One, does his power relate to him being able to bite me when he shouldn't have been able to reach. Two, how do you stop Luffy from having a panic attack or getting overly emotional and attacking blindly, yoi." Sabo raised an eyebrow at the commander's tone.

"Those sound rather more like demands than actual questions, Mr. First." Sabo held up a hand to stop Vista from speaking as he continues to lock eyes with Marco. "Pardon me, Mr. Fifth. I didn't intend to make it sound as if I _wouldn't_ answer—"

Giggling was suddenly heard and everyone (including the dozing Stefan) looked up at helm's roof. Thatch, Vista and Marco felt a sense of relief hit them that Luffy was now in a much better frame of mind compared to when Ace had taken the boy away. Izou felt a small smile grace his shadowed features when he caught the faint impression of a gentle coloring Sabo's own face that was softly illuminated by the starlight.

Sabo scratched Stefan's shoulder and the dog went back to it nap as the blond responded in a light tone, "Yes, Lu's Devil Fruit makes him very… _flexible_." Izou did _not_ like that sneaky grin on Blondie's face.

"Flexible," Thatch repeated dryly.

"Yep." Vista raised an eyebrow.

"That the best you got?"

"Best you are going to receive from me," the blond smirked, obviously enjoying their exasperation.

"And Birdy's other question," the geisha prompted. Sabo immediately lost his lighthearted attitude.

"There's no real way to answer that, sirs," was the slow reply. Sabo gave a gentle half-smile when they heard Luffy giggle again, followed by some deeper chuckling that was from Ace. The smile caved to a mild grimace as the trio's middle brother went on, "Lu…had been getting better in regards to his outbursts. It is usually rather difficult to set him off, but a guarantee has always been…"

Marco exchanged concerned looks with his brothers as the teen trailed off and stared despondently at the ground before him. Vista, Izou and Thatch gave subtle indications to show they felt the same as the First Commander.

Even Izou was now finding himself wanting to be more invested with the trio. Wanting to help convince Sabo, Ace and Luffy to join their large family. He didn't know if his brothers could see it. Marco maybe. Pops as well. By how they always clung to one another, the way one always kept an eye glued to the forms of the other two…

' _Something has broken them and they are terrified of it happening again._ ' Izou flicked an eye over to the Phoenix-zoan as he thought, ' _Birdy needs to apologize to Strawhat for scaring him._ '

Trying to break the heavy mood, Thatch casually broke in, "So we just keep the Evil Whitey Bay and her horde of minions away from Little Luffy! Ah, plus you and Acey. Don't want the ship going up in flames!" Thatch grinned at the boy looking up at him.

Sabo had jerked his head up to stare at Thatch as the man spoke, face the perfect picture of stupefaction. The cook's grin widened at the sight and even Izou sniggered at the kid's reaction. Marco lost the pinch in his face and Vista had a warm look in his dark eyes. The atmosphere brightened as Sabo began chuckling at Thatch's attempt at levity.

"Hehe, don't let Ace hear you call him that! He might burn your 'precious hair'. Then what would Lu call you?"

"My name," Thatch deadpanned. Sabo grinned and shook his head.

"Nah. Probably something more akin to 'Mr. Not-Poofy Pom-Pom'." Thatch's face fell at the horrible name and Izou burst out laughing, reaching around Vista to smack his brother on the back a few times. Marco and Vista were muffling their own snickers at the chef's dejected state.

"Anyway," Sabo continued, adopting a more serious bearing but now lacking the despair of before, "if Luffy should get like that again, do _not_ touch him. Find Ace or I, if we are not around for some unfathomable reason, and do _not_ crowd him. Should you need to buy time for Ace or I to get to him, then say our names. That will always break through to him." Sabo eyed each of them critically, searching for something. His gaze finally stopped on Thatch. "You."

The man started. "Wha-?"

"Luffy may have bitten you before, but I believe he might be more responsive to attempts you make to comfort him in place of Ace and I in such a situation." The blond shot a shifty glance at the firebird-man as he muttered, "I would say Mr. First but…"

Izou hid a jolt. ' _Ha! I knew it!'_

Marco opened his mouth to inquire about what Sabo was implying. "Why—"

Then something smacked into the mizzenmast and fell to the ground near Izou.

* * *

Luffy was feeling really tired but Sabo still wanted to talk for a bit longer with the Commanders. He was feeling much better though after Ace took him up here to see the stars and tell stories. He even got to take the blanket off his head so he could look around freely without it blocking anything. However, Luffy kept the nice, big, fuzzy blue and green blankie wrapped around him.

 _'I have to find a fuzzy and cuddly crewmember to join the Pirate King's crew!'_

Sabo and Ace would laugh at Luffy sometimes for his love of fuzzy and soft things but Lu never took it personally. His brothers knew that he had trouble feeling those sort of things when covered in scales and tough hide. The thinnest ones were on his snout, the very tip, so he could better deduce temperature or the like. Sabo said something about "pit organs" possibly being located there as well.

Sharp eyes that could see in very little light made it so darkness wasn't an issue to him. Even with no light, Luffy had been taught how to see what was around him using a special sound he could make. When little and hungry, the dragon had discovered that making the sound around the squeaky flying-mice (Ace later told him they were called "bats") made the creatures fly into things and drop to the ground. It wasn't much but he had been hungry and they were food. Sabo also explained that Luffy could "see" certain things his brothers couldn't because of the "pit organs" on his snout.

There were also some very fine, short hairs on his lower jaw and ear nubs that helped with sensing vibrations to aid his hearing. Luffy didn't have actual ears like his brothers or many other animals. Sabo had found a special book that had some information about some dragons' anatomy (Luffy's kind weren't in it to their disappointment) that showed how his "ears" worked. Tiny hairs at the tips of the small scales could feel vibrations in the air or water and then there were special canals and hair-things _inside_ that could pick up other vibrations. His ear-nubs may be small for something of his size, but they were very sensitive.

Comparing his ears to a Human's or other animal showed they were a little like birds' in that they were covered to protect them (though they weren't holes in his head, that had freaked him out a little). It made sense for them to be covered so he wouldn't be bothered by the sound of wind constantly in them when flying. Outside so he could hear better, kind of like a tiger or deer with their big ears to catch noise. They were small and covered in scale to protect them fire and rough treatment if he were running through thick brush or fighting. He could dive deep in the water to grab food and come back up without them hurting like Ace and Sabo's do. They couldn't tell from the book but Sabo thought that maybe Luffy was missing a certain "chamber" in his ears that Humans had.

Lu also possessed a great sense of smell thanks to his long muzzle and also had special pits inside his mouth (on the roof) that he could use to better track scents and differentiate between them. Luffy's sense of taste wasn't as good as his nose but it was somewhat close. At least it was good enough to usually tell if something funny was in his food or drink that he hadn't been able to smell. That had come in handy.

But even though all of these were great and Lu loved his natural form very much… Again, tough scales and thick hide made for a rather pitiful sense of touch. Luffy could feel 'hot' and 'cold', though usually didn't _get_ cold himself and was very resistant to heat for being a "giant black lizard" (Ace's words). But he couldn't tell if something felt 'soft' or 'fuzzy' when covered in scales. Until he had been able to learn how to Shift (and succeed at doing it), Luffy hadn't even _known_ things could feel like that.

Although his big brothers laughed and joked about Lu's little obsession with objects (and sometimes animals, if he didn't eat them) that were fluffy or soft or fuzzy, they _understood_ it. They didn't laugh _at_ him for it like the other Human kids did back in Foosha Village. Maybe in the beginning when Sabo and Ace first learned of it (which had hurt). But after the two learned _about_ it (Lu loved they cared enough to do so) they never did again.

So Ace laughing at him for scampering around and tripping on his big blankie while chasing the little Wisps didn't bother Luffy in the slightest. He was even giggling along and Lu didn't have to worry about accidentally hurting Hat because Ace was holding onto it.

Which was fortunate because when he jumped to try and grab the Wisp, Luffy tripped on a corner of his blanket. Again. Only this time the dragon was sent somersaulting into the mast at the back of the wheelhouse. Smacking into the wooden pole didn't hurt—' _Rubber is an awesome power to have no matter what Ace says!'_ —and neither did the long fall to the deck. What _did_ hurt was his pride and, without the distraction, the knowledge that he was again feeling how tired he was.

Luffy could hear Ace laughing above him as he fought to free himself enough from the suddenly _very_ clingy blanket to get a breath of fresh air. Luffy kept a fold over his head (he could smell the Commanders were still here) as he _finally_ managed to free himself.

"Bhuuuh! Ace, you did that on purpose!"

"Ahahaha!"Ace pounded the wood roof as he knelt on all fours, staring down at Lu over the structure's edge. "Nah-haha! That was all you, Lu!"

Luffy narrowed his eyes at the laughing teen above. "Stop laughing! Meanie!"

Naturally, Lu wasn't really mad and Ace knew it. Both sensed Sabo inquiring if they were feeling better, more of the concern being directed at Luffy, to which they sent a small pulse of affirmation.

"Oh shit, are you okay?"

"Hmm?" Luffy turned to see Lady-Man staring at him with big eyes, fear and worry floating to the dragon on the wind with the Human's perfume. The dragon canted his head under the blanket, trying to decipher that one unnamed feeling he could sense coming from the other. "What do you mean?"

Ace had stopped laughing and Lu could feel his brother's irritation returning.

Lady-Man, Pom-Pom and Mini-Mustache Guy were looking from him, up to the roof, then back at him. Mango was just staring at him with that bored face and Luffy fidgeted under the scrutiny. He knew Mango was analyzing him, too, because that bored face was a lie just like Sabo's could be when he was mad or up to something.

/( _Worry Alright?_ )/

He nodded and replied to his oldest brother /Fine. Not hurt./ Taking his eyes of the pineapple-head, Luffy asked Sabo /Sabo finished? Can stay down here?/

Ace jumped down from the roof as Luffy stumbled over, trying to not trip, to Sabo and Mini Banana Mustache. He heard Ace following after as he snuggled into Sabo's side and Stefan's ribs behind him.

"What he meant, Little One—"

"Luffy!" Lu knew he was a runt but that didn't mean he appreciated always being reminded of the fact. Plus, it sounded like Mini-Mustache was talking down to him. Luffy may be small for his age and younger than his brothers, but he wasn't a baby and wasn't _stupid_.

Ace snorted as he slumped down on Luffy's left, scooching closer to press up against his side. Sabo moved slightly and Luffy knew his blond brother was hiding a grin. Both knew he could be touchy on the subject of his height. Especially when he was tired and feeling cranky.

/( _Curious_ ) What did you talk about?/ The dragon absently listened to Mini-Mustache while Sabo told him of what had been discussed after he and Ace left. Sabo left some parts out, sharing those with Ace only as he updated the two. Not that Luffy minded—actually, he did a little—as this has happened many times. But he trusted his brothers and knew they wouldn't keep anything bad from him.

"My apologies, Luffy. Izou was asking if you were injured or hurt when you fell from the roof."

Tuning back in, the dragon answered nonchalantly, "Oh. No, I wouldn't get hurt from something like that. I've fallen from _much_ higher too!" He laughed when both Ace and Sabo groaned.

Twisting so that he could see out of the opening in his blanket-cocoon, Luffy looked over the four Commanders. He was still curious about _why_ Old Man Giant Banana Mustache— _'Oh! That sounds better than the other names I've used! I'll use that one when I see him next!'_ —got mad at Ace. He knew Ace and Sabo were curious too, so why wait?

"Ne, why was Giant Old Man, Mango and Pom-Pom angry at Ace?" Luffy watched as the Humans donned expressions of varying confusion at his question. Mango was hardest to tell but he could mildly sense it.

"Ace attacked Pops from behind, yoi," was the shrugged reply. Luffy just stared at the man sitting on the deck, bright starlight lighting up the area like a cloudy day to the dragon.

 _'He's serious_ ,' Luffy realized. There was no deceit. Only plain truth shone in the Human's voice and aura. _'The hell? Ace_ said _he would try to kill their alpha. Why get mad_ now _?'_

Ace and Sabo were as equally dumbfounded as him when Luffy shared his findings.

" _That_ is your reason?" Sabo even _sounded_ like he couldn't believe it. Well… His brother _couldn't_ , but it was unusual for Sabo to let his mask drop like that around others.

"Um, _yeah_? It's not really _that_ shocking, you know," Pom-Pom answered. Now the Commanders looked even more confused and Luffy was easily able to sense it.

/( _Confused_ ) Are Humans normally this stupid? _Atce_ _said_ he was gonna try to kill Alpha Whitebeard. Did they not know he was serious when he said that? / Luffy only got an answer of puzzled agreement from Ace.

/( _Perplexed Unknown MaybePerhaps?_ ) I think there might be more to it than that, Lu, Ace./ Luffy frowned at Sabo's comment.

Eyeing the Commanders, keeping a portion of his focus centered on Mango, the dragon examined them as he 'listened' to Ace's response.

/( _True? Confused Why?_ ) Like _what_? I couldn't find any blind spots before so I did what we sometimes do to other prey we hunt. End result's the same so why would method matter? /

Luffy vehemently protested to his oldest brother's last statement. /( _Anger Bad Deny Nottrue!_ ) So the 'Rules' you agreed to are pointless? Don't matter?/

Ace wrapped an arm around him and rubbed Lu's right arm under the blanket. /( _Sorry! Nonono Notright Deny_ ) I didn't mean that! I completely agree with your 'Rules', _Lú_. I've been following them, haven't I? No poison. No seastone. No sea water. No blackmail/hostage. Just me and my abilities! /

/( _Soothe Calm_ ) I believe Ace meant that any method _within_ the 'Rules' wouldn't matter since the desired outcome doesn't change. /

That mollified the dragon, who sent a pulse of apology to Ace and understanding to both older siblings. He noticed Mango was looking at them funny now, a searching look in the man's eyes which wasn't there a moment ago.

 _'Can't be from our silence. It's barely been a minute since Pom-Pom spoke._ '

One great perk about mind-speak ('telepathy' Sabo said it was) is that Luffy and his brothers could have a whole conversation in under a minute. Sometimes seconds if they opened the connection wide enough and let down their barriers. They hardly ever did _that_ though because Ace and Sabo would get killer headaches if it was kept up for more than ten or fifteen seconds (Sabo timed it once).

"Why do you seem so surprised by this, yoi?"

"Because Ace _told_ you he would try to kill Captain Giant Old Man Banana-Mustache," Luffy deadpanned. He grinned under the cover of his blanket when he felt Sabo hold back a chuckle.

"The old bastard didn't have any blind spots that I could find, so I just did what we always do when hunting," Ace stated. Lu giggled tiredly at the gaping mouths of the other Humans.

Big Mini-Mustache stroked said mustache as he said, "You don't attack someone, especially Pops, from behind like that, Ace."

In sync (and by complete accident), all three brothers asked, "Why?" Pom-Pom and Lady-Man groaned while Mango sighed in exasperation.

"You challenged Whitebeard to a fight—a _duel_ —Ace," Lady-Man explained. "You _don't_ attack someone's back in a duel. It's very rude and disgraceful."

"But… We're _pirates_. Aren't we s'pposed to cheat? And Ace never said he was going to 'duel' Giant Old Man. Just take his head," the dragon returned with mild confusion. He felt Ace nod and sensed a swell of agreement from him. Sabo was mulling over Lady-Man and Big Mini-Mustache's words still.

"No, Luffy yoi. Ace's words signified he was challenging our captain, like Izou has said. Even pirates, the decent ones at least, should respect the rules of a duel. It's a matter of _pride_ during such fights. Only those with no pride would attack someone from behind in a duel, yoi." Luffy considered Mango's words.

The guy didn't sound angry anymore and the dragon couldn't see anything that hinted at the man being upset over Ace's actions. The blue eyes (which looked grey to Lu right now with only the stars providing light) held only traces of understanding in them once Ace explained himself.

Pom-Pom's snort drew the dragon's eyes over to the cook. With a tone of baffled amusement, the cook chuckled, "I can't believe you compared fighting _Pops_ to hunting for _food!_ Hahaha! Wait 'til the others hear about that!" Groans from all four Commanders met the man's words. Luffy giggled at them as he snuggled up against Sabo and Ace.

/( _Smug Happy_ ) By the way, _Sávbó_ … I win!/ Luffy giggled. A grin broke out when he felt both his brothers twist to stare at him. At first with confusion (he'd sent the thought to both) and then dawning dread from Sabo. He laughed at the sound of his blond brother smacking a hand against his face and groaning.

"Ace. You suck!" Ace's confusion, and Luffy could sense mild worry building, grew at Sabo's disgruntled words.

"Huh? What did I do _now_?" The dragon laughed some more after spying the renewed bafflement on the Commander's faces.

"You were _supposed_ to have gotten tossed into the ocean _before_ you hit Attempt #30." Now he could feel Ace's worry and confusion losing out to mounting shock and irritation.

"You two bet on me getting thrown overboard," the fire-user mumbled disbelievingly.

"Captain Whitebeard has shown surprising patience in regards to your recurring assassination ventures against him," Sabo commented idly. Luffy was having fun listening to Ace and Sabo and watching the funny faces the Commanders were making at the news.

"You _bet_ on my ass being thrown into the _ocean_ , you dicks!" Lu chuckled at Ace's reaction.

"Yes, charcoal-for-brains, that fact has since been established. Also, I am not the one at fault in this scenario. Luffy is."

"Sabo's a meanie," Luffy pouted. Stupid brother ratting him out. He whined aloud when Ace ground his palm on Lu's head.

"You're _both_ at fault, jerks!" Ace sat back with a huff, releasing Luffy from the teen's rough treatment.

The dragon went silent when he felt a spark of something from Ace. Reaching his mind out, but not intruding beyond the other's barrier, Luffy sensed a darker confusion slowly rising up in Ace. It took him a few seconds to place why his brother would suddenly be feeling like that before he remembered Pom-Pom hadn't answered Ace's earlier question. Now, though he was still obviously curious about it, his oldest brother was trying to get out of asking it again for fear of what answer he might be given.

' _Ace needs to ask,_ ' Luffy decided.

Pom-Pom hadn't been lying or deceptive when he first answered. The dragon had sensed honest confusion from the older pirate at Ace's inquiry. He had also smelled anxiety from the group after the question had been asked, too. More of that unnamed emotion had mounted in the air and it was really starting to grate on the dragon's mind that he hadn't been able to identify it yet.

To his blond brother alone, Luffy said /Ace needs to ask Pom-Pom again. Without other Humans./

He felt Sabo stiffen before the older wrapped an arm about him. Mango's gaze fixed on Sabo and him, travelling to Ace for a few second, then returning. It unnerved Lu a little how observant the Zoan was but, hopefully, the Human would pick up on his and Sabo's plan.

Luffy sat up as his older brother stood and stretched, hearing a couple pops come from the blond's joints. While donning his top hat, Lu watched Sabo give Mango a stern look before flicking his eyes to Ace and Pom-Pom. Both felt relief when comprehension dawned in the older blond's gaze.

"I think it's time to call it a night, yoi," Marco turned and said to the other Commanders. They looked surprised by the sudden shift and it took a few seconds of Mango giving them an unreadable look (though Luffy could sense something demanding about it even if he couldn't see the other's eyes) before they assented to the silent command.

Feeling Ace grow a tad nervous, Luffy leaned over to slump against his brother. The fire-teen eased his body at the contact and settled after Lu sent a small bubble of reassurance and calm.

Mango was the first to get up, followed by Big Mini-Mustache and Lady-Man. Pom-Pom was collecting the sack (which still had some food) and making to stand as well when Mango passed behind him. The bird-man pushed down on the cook's shoulder as he rose, surprising the other and forcing him to sit back on the ground. Ignoring the puzzled gazes of his three fellows, Mango gestured for the large man who smelled lightly of flowers and the pretty smaller man who carried the scent of gunpowder to start walking. The chef was glancing between the brothers and the retreating forms of his friends uncertainly.

Luffy sighed when he felt Ace's mild confusion disappear under mounting anger and anxiety (the last he knows Ace wouldn't freely admit to feeling). Pom-Pom also became more nervous after seeing Ace glare at him. He wasn't looking at his brother but knew from the resurfacing tension in the oldest teen's body that that was what Ace was doing. Besides, the dragon knew his brothers and that was how Ace would react in this situation. Just as Luffy knew Sabo was switching between watching the remaining Commander and watching him and Ace. Keeping tabs on the outsider and making sure his brothers were okay.

The dragon twitched when he felt Ace's glare redirect to him. "Luffy—"

"Ace needs to ask," Lu cut him off, turning a defiant glare of his own on his older brother. He ignored the bewildered expression and mounting confusion of the watching Human, keeping his attention solely on Ace.

"Listen to Lu, Ace," Sabo added. /( _Assurance Calm_ ) We can't let you back down from this. You know it will just fester and gnaw at you otherwise./

Lu watched Ace's glare soften and felt a dim pulse reluctant agreement come from him. Behind him Sabo sighed and then there was a rustling of cloth. ' _Probably crossing his arms_ ,' Lu thought.

"Good. Now, do you want us to go or…?" Ace glanced between him and Sabo before shifting and wrapping an arm about the dragon's shoulders. "Right then. Shall we take our leave, Monsieur Stefan?"

He gave the mini-wolf a reassuring pat on the back when he heard a low, questioning whine from the other. Mini Banana Mustache got up as he and Ace scooted away to give the dog room to stand. Sabo bid the Commander 'good night' and told the dragon and fire-user he would be waiting at their room with Luffy's large nest.

* * *

Ace moved into the spot Stefan had vacated, placing his back against the wall and drawing a small portion of comfort from the physical barrier. His anxiety and uncertainty mounted with Sabo's departure. Luffy, feeling his brother's distress, untangled the blanket from around him and crawled into Ace's lap. He shifted about to sit slightly sideways, with his head tucked under Ace's chin and right shoulder pressing just off the center of his brother's chest, so he could still get a view of Thatch.

The teens' behavior and words had Thatch worried about what they wanted to talk about. The chef knew Ace's move to put the wall at his back was a defensive gesture. It also meant adding more space between the tense teen and his brother and the commander. Watching Luffy wrap the large and fuzzy blanket around the two and then Ace settle in around the smaller boy, an odd half-formed thought nagged at him.

The fire-user relaxed incrementally as Luffy nuzzled against him, emitting small pulses of affection. Though the anxiousness and shadows never left Ace's eyes, Thatch found himself less tense as the teen wrapped his arms around Luffy's front.

' _Ace looks smaller than usual…_ ' Thatch mused. He stilled as something came to him and examined the two more closely.

Ace was holding Luffy really close to him, the older teen hunched around the smaller figure like the wind would blow Luffy away if Ace let up. The small boy picked up his straw hat from the ground next to them and replaced the orange hat Ace wore with it. Ace grinned at the action and rubbed his chin lightly against the younger brother's soft, shaggy hair.

' _I'm not imagining it._ ' The chef had only ever seen the older two brothers comforting the youngest. But this was the first time he had witnessed the opposite. Ace looked _small_ because he wasn't the one offering comfort to a distressed little brother. He was the one _being_ _comforted_.

Luffy watched as a glint of worry mixed with sudden knowledge entered the man's eyes. He narrowed his own when Thatch went to speak, silently demanding that the man remain quiet. Ace hated being seen as weak or showing weakness in front of those who weren't Luffy and Sabo. Thatch caught the kid's meaning and closed his mouth with a small nod. The dragon returned his attention to Ace, being careful to keep his eyes half-open so less starlight could have a chance to reflect off them.

/Want me to ask?/ Ace tightened his arms but shook his head no at his little brother's question.

Taking a deep breath, the fire-user looked up at Thatch and asked, "Why did you save me?" Thatch gaped at him.

' _Is he still seriously hung up on that?'_ A search of the kids' faces revealed that yes, yes they were. " _Why_ are you so hung up on that? I already answered you earlier, didn't I? There was no way I would just sit and watch you drown!"

"That isn't an _answer_ ," Ace shouted back. Holding Luffy tighter as he felt anger bubbling up to hide his growing confusion over the man saving him, the teen went on, "And why _wouldn't_ I be 'hung up' over that!? Like Sabo said, you guys have _every reason_ to not have helped me. So _why did you_?"

Thatch, reeling from the confusion that was hidden behind Ace's angry tone, stared in shock for a few moments. "Okay! First off, and ignoring the rest of what you said for a sec, just how was 'there's no way I could let a _kid drown_ ' not a damn answer?"

"'Cause it's a bullshit excuse! That's like fucking saying the damn sun is yellow 'cause it's the 'sun'!" Flames flickered to life across Ace's shoulders and down his arms.

Thatch hoped they wouldn't catch Luffy's hat on fire (the kid was oddly protective of it) as they traveled up the nape of Ace's neck. Lu lowered the lids of his eyes against the new light source, keeping them as shadowed as possible. The flames settled some as the dragon gently thrummed against Ace so Thatch wouldn't hear.

A tad calmer thanks to his little brother, but no less angry, Ace continued, "And _no_ , I won't forget the _damn good_ reasons you guys had to just let my sorry ass sink!"

The Fourth Commander groaned before leaning forward and pointing a finger at the irate teen as he bit out, "For your information, Hothead, _everyone_ who saw you go overboard dropped what they were doing and _rushed their asses over_ to see if you were alright! I," he brought the hand back to jab his thumb into his chest, "just happened to be closer and faster. Otherwise someone _else_ would have jumped in grabbed you!" Luffy tilted his head a fraction at the Human's shout.

He had been focused completely on Ace at the time but he could vaguely recall a rise in tension and anxiety in the air when Ace fell into the sea. He had been very tense and protective of Ace because so many were staring at his brother. Ace's confusion and roiling thoughts only increased as Lu shared his thoughts with him.

"That doesn't fuckin' explain anything!" Fire spread from Ace's arms to travel across the blanket covering him and Lu then down to the ground to form a shallow circle around the place they sat. Ace glared heatedly at the chef as he continued to rage, "Why save a damn pirate who is constantly trying to _kill the bastard_ you call _Captain_?" Thatch's jaw clenched at the way Ace said 'captain' like it was a slur. "Why help someone who has made it _very fucking clear_ he doesn't even _like_ you people? Who _sets on fire_ anyone who gets close to him?" Said fire curled around Luffy and Ace at that last shout, as if it were trying to deny its user's words.

Luffy, trying to calm his brother, projected a feeling of calm and began thrumming. He kept it quiet so Pom-Pom wouldn't hear. Ace loosened his arms somewhat, not even realizing he had started to squeeze them around Lu during his rant.

"Dammit, kid, why are you having so much trouble with this," Thatch ground out, staring intently at Ace. In a low voice the chef said, "Even if you _don't_ like any of us—and I call 'bullshit' to that—Pops likes you and wants you to join. So if you _are_ in trouble, kid, of course we would jump to help you. That includes plucking your hotheaded ass from the ocean when it falls in!"

"It's not like fucking _asked_ for your help! And it was the giant, old bastard's _fault_ that I went in anyway!"

/Hey, Lu? Ace feels very angry. What's going on?/

"You didn't _need_ to ask for my damn help, brat! I did it because I damn well _wanted to_! Why is that so hard to understand!?"

Luffy darted his eyes between each shouting pirate as they continued to shout back and forth. /You know that game with the ball and small table? And you hit the ball back and forth?/

"Because you had no fucking reason to!" Thatch groaned and scrubbed his face with his hands. That stupid statement just brought them back to square one.

/( _Puzzled_ ) You mean 'ping-pong'?/

"And just why isn't 'because I wanted to' not considered a reason, kid!?"

/( _Exasperated Tired_ ) Yeah. It's kinda like that./ Luffy knew Sabo was chuckling at that answer even if he couldn't see it. The echo of mirth gave it away. Deciding he was getting tired of this 'ping-pong' match the two were having, Luffy butted in, "Pom-Pom? Why did you _want_ to help Ace?"

Thank the winds they shut up with that. Luffy's sensitive ears were beginning to hurt from all the yelling.

Ace jolted at his little brother's voice, the quiet sound laden with curiosity cutting through the growing tension. In the ensuing silence he realized just how _loud_ he and the chef had been. "Sorry, Lu," he muttered softly, gently giving the dragon an apologetic squeeze, "I hurt your ears didn't I?"

Luffy nodded against his brother's chest but didn't give the other time to feel guilty over something that was an accident. "Is fine. Ace was upset and didn't mean to. So it's fine."

Guilt swelled in him and Ace was about to deny his little brother's words when the dragon shot him a meaningful glare. A shroud of affection, forgiveness and love descended on him courtesy of the small raven in his arms.

With a warm half-smile he replied, "Right. Luffy is fine." Ace's smile grew when Luffy rubbed his cheek against the fire-user's chest, increasing the depth of the thrum for several seconds.

Thatch felt his own irritation with Ace melt away at the sight before him. Hearing Ace apologize for being loud, and the very evident guilt the thought caused for the freckled teen if that pinched expression was anything to judge, Thatch lightly cleared his throat to get the kids' attention.

"Hey, Luffy? Were my shouts hurting your ears too?" Ace stiffened, not having expected the man to hear him.

Ignoring his brother, Luffy nodded, "Yeah, but I'm good now!"

"I see. Anyway, I'm sorry for being loud too. I was just upset because Ace wasn't listening to what I was trying to say." Naturally, said teen took great offense to this.

" _I_ wasn't 'listening'? You still haven't answered my question damn bastard! You just keep repeating the same thing over and over!" The Fourth noticed that, although loud, Ace's voice wasn't even close to the volume it carried before Luffy's interruption.

"And I _said_ —"

"Wrong." Thatch and Ace stared down at Luffy, baffled at the one-word statement. "Ace didn't know how to ask the _right_ question after Pom-Pom answered, so Pom-Pom's answer was always wrong because Ace used the wrong question." Ace gave a wary glance at the commander when Thatch sat up and crossed his arms.

The chef stared at the smaller brother for a few seconds before asking, "And what is 'right' question Ace was trying to ask?"

"Why did you _want_ to save Ace?" Thatch snorted and rolled his eyes.

"That's the same th—" No. He stopped and directed a contemplative look at the boy Ace was huddled around.

' _No. That_ is _a different question from Ace's._ ' Seeing how tense Ace returned to being after Luffy said what his brother had supposedly been trying to ask, Thatch didn't doubt it any longer.

The freckled teen was studiously ignoring the older pirate and the searching gaze that was focused on him. He hunched his shoulders and pulled Lu tighter to his chest as the silence dragged on. Orange flames pulled back to circle their Master and 'one who was part of Master but not'; offering the two an intangible embrace of comfort. Luffy kept his partially open eyes on the Whitebeard Pirate, waiting for the other to make the next move.

"To answer your question, Luffy… or Ace's, I guess…" Thatch mumbled, trailing off. "Gaah!" Luffy cocked his head, baffled and a little amused, as Thatch unfolded and arm to scratch at his own head in frustration.

Not liking how the man was taking so long to answer—plus the nervous anxiousness over what that answer might _be_ coming back with a vengeance—Ace tapped one of Lu's legs to get his attention. Luffy looked up and saw his brother jerk his chin to signal he should get up and frowned. Thatch caught the gesture and quickly held his hands up to wave and indicate they stay put.

"Wait, wait! Sorry, but I was trying to think of how to answer so Ace would be satisfied and we could avoid the whole 'round robin' fiasco thing." Ace resituated himself and went back to ignoring the man. Thatch frowned at how stiff the kid was. Looking Luffy in the eye, he said with complete honesty, "I wanted to help Ace because I like him." Lu smiled at the Human, liking the sincerity he read in the other.

Ace whipped his head around to stare at the commander, completely dumbfounded by the answer. ' _He_ 'likes' _me? But why?'_

Ace rarely spoke to anyone on the damn crew except to make snide comments or cuss at them. He constantly tried to kill their Captain. He set shit on fire when pissed. He has been nothing but an ass to these people. He threw fireballs at those who tried to talk to him when Luffy and Sabo weren't around. Has thrown several fireballs at Thatch in particular…and set the man on fire. Repeatedly.

Why would the commander say he liked someone like _that_!?

But… He glanced down at the dragon sitting in his lap. ' _Thatch isn't lying…_ ' Luffy would have told him the second he sensed deceit. The fact he _hadn't_ meant the cook was being truthful in his words. Actually… Lu hasn't even so much as _hinted_ the commander was being anything _but_ sincere and truthful this entire time! This realization was astounding to Ace. An extreme, unforeseen shock to his mind. Especially as he pondered over what the man had been shouting at him just a few minutes ago.

Thatch almost winced at the shock stamped on Ace's face at his words. Was it really that hard for the kid to believe he was liked by the commander? Suddenly nervous from the way Ace reacted to his statement, the chef began rambling as he switched between staring at the deck and the two brothers.

"I mean, yeah… Ace can be prickly around the edges and has a quick temper. But Fossa's a little like that too. He doesn't really talk to people who aren't you or Sabo but we also have a few brothers and sisters who are like that with those who aren't family. Ace is a good kid and I would like to get to know him better. So of course I saved him when he fell into the sea," the cook finished brightly and grinned at the two ravens. Luffy smiled back and leaned against Ace, quietly thrumming with pleasure at the Commander's answer.

The fire-user continued to stare in shock at the pompadoured man. "You like me?"

Thatch raised an eyebrow and nodded. Didn't he just say that? He was pretty sure he said that.

"Why?" The chef almost groaned but stopped short when he caught the look in the teen's eyes. "I throw fireballs at you when you piss me off."

He shrugged, "Iz shoots bullets at me for the same reason."

"I've lit you on _fire_! Multiple times!"

"And Marco's tossed my ass in the ocean after one too many bird jokes. Nothing new." Thatch didn't like how the kid never lost that expression of stupefied shock. As if it was next to _impossible_ to ever like Ace. He said as much to the freckled teen. "Ace. Why do _you_ think I—or Marco, or Pops, or Vista, or even Izou— _don't_ like you?"

Ace clung to his little brother again. Drawing strength from Luffy's physical and mental presence; he reached out to brush against Sabo's mind and received a cool wash of affection and support in return. Staring down at the deck between the commander and himself, Ace thought of all the reasons people _wouldn't_ like him. How those who didn't even _know_ him wished for his nonexistence or ill-fortune. How most of those who _did_ happen to find out about him wished for his death.

To Ace, Sabo and Luffy—his soul-brothers and _asalkynn_ —were the exceptions in the world. The only 'people' to know everything about him and still love him unconditionally. He could count on both hands (only one if he stuck to those he really trusted) how many people came even _remotely_ close to the amount love his brothers held for him.

And that was the real clincher at the end of the day. Once these pirates found out the trio's secrets, Luffy, Sabo and he would be thrown aside or even killed. Either killed or trapped to be sold (and _then_ killed) in Lu's case.

Luffy grew solemn as he caught echoes of Ace's thoughts. He didn't know _exactly_ what was going through his older brother's mind, but he knew these particular vague feelings brushing their connection. Ace was thinking about how everyone referred to them as 'Monsters'. Luffy at least understood where Humans were coming from (somewhat) when they talked of dragons being "devils-incarnate" or "living demons". But the young Drakkón still had difficulty grasping why one would hate another—of the _same species_ —just because of who their parent was (Ace) or class they were born to (Sabo). His brothers had tried (many times) over the years to explain the reasoning to Luffy, but always gave up in the end and labelled the topic as another 'mystery' related to Human behavior.

The Fourth Commander felt a stone sink into his stomach as he waited for Ace to answer. Both boys now had had dark and despondent expressions on their faces—Luffy tending towards the latter than the former. Thatch's heart felt like lead when Ace finally responded with a quiet and resigned, "Because people just don't."

Both boys left after that. Ace carrying Luffy and holding the smaller boy like he was a lifeline in a storm. Luffy's straw hat sat firmly on Ace's head; Ace's own orange cowboy one held gently in Lu's hands. Luffy peeked over Ace's shoulder and gave a small wave to the Commander before they left the man's sight.

After they were finally gone, Thatch slumped and let his face fall into his hands. Good gods they had a lot— _a lot!_ —of work ahead of them if Pops were to get those three boys to join their extended family.

* * *

"I see you're still up, yoi." Thatch twisted around to see Marco entering the kitchen from the mess hall.

"Yo, Featherhead. What're you doing here?"

"Checking to see why you are making…?"

"Brownies," Thatch answered, going back to pouring the mix into the pans he had out.

"Brownies at one in the morning, yoi."

The pompadoured chef paused and glanced at the clock. He was surprised when he found that really was the time being shown. "Huh. It's that late already?"

Finished pouring the batter, Thatch proceeded to put the twelve pans into one of the kitchen's large, closet-like ovens. Marco watched the chef amble over to one of the fridges and pull out a small plate of fruit tarts. A thin eyebrow arched at the sight.

"So either your talk with Ace went well or it went terrible and you're coping with cooking again, yoi." Thatch snorted.

"Oh it went _great_. Lots of talking. Lots of shouting. The whole shebang! One hell of a damn heart to heart," the man replied with heavy sarcasm as he walked over with the plate of treats.

Marco calmly strolled over to sit at the corner table. Thatch set the tarts down and was about to leave to go whip up something else when the First Commander kicked the chair opposite him out from its spot.

"Sit, yoi." Thatch glanced at the chair before trying to make an attempt to escape.

"Marco, I should really—"

"Thatch. Sit." The chef huffed but complied. Marco frowned as he watched the younger man slump down onto the chair before appearing to sag into the seat like he trying to become one with it. "What happened, yoi," he prompted gently, snagging one of the tarts in front of him.

Thatch groaned but complied with his brother's demand. He told of how Ace asked his initial question of why the cook had bothered to save him. How said question lead to a rather lengthy shouting match that only stopped by Luffy's quiet interruption. "It was surprising how he worded the question. Almost thought he was just restating the one Ace had asked until I realized just how great a difference there was between the two."

Marco listened attentively as his brother went on to describe Ace's reaction to Luffy's proposed question. Recounting the way Ace held Luffy like an anchored ship, dependent on his brother's presence to keep him from floating away. The description of the rest of the conversation causing a similar spike of agitation, frustration and anger the First Commander knew Thatch must be feeling.

"You would have to see it to really understand, Marco. Ace…he… Dammit! The kid so absolutely _shocked_ at the idea I—or _anyone_ —liked him," Thatch said, voice strained with aching grief. "And that last bit before they left? Shit, Marco. Ace sounded so hopelessly resigned and accepting of the fact he believed no one _could_ ever like him. As if such a thing were _normal_ for him!"

The Phoenix-zoan watched with grim eyes as his brother slumped onto the table, face down, with his arms hanging at his sides. Thatch sighed and moved his head so his cheek, instead of his forehead and nose, rested against the tabletop.

"Between the Trio's trust issues, issues with being touched, Sabo's chilling—and frankly freaky—mood-swings and Ace's depressing opinions… I think Luffy might be the most stable of the three," Thatch muttered grimly. "Fwuuuh… We have our damn work cut out for us…"

"At least you _made_ progress with Ace and Luffy, yoi," Marco huffed out. Thatch twisted to stare up at the pineapple-shaped head of his ship-brother.

"Whaddaya mean by tha'?"

Marco grimaced and sat back. "I felt Luffy's stare almost constantly fixed on me when we were talking to them tonight. The kid was also fairly twitchy whenever I looked at Ace or Sabo too long, mostly Ace though."

Thatch mulled over what he remembered of the talk with the boys that night. "Yeah, I remember that. Why?"

"Izou figured it out before me and really laid it on thick after we left you. Apparently, yoi," the lazy-eyed blond stated grimly, "I can expect to not be allowed within ten-feet of Ace if Luffy is around." Thatch sat up, stunned at his brother's words.

"Why!? I thought Luffy liked you?" The phoenix tapped a finger against the tabletop, glaring at the point of contact like it had offended him.

"I sort of considered the prospect after I grabbed him today, but Izou says there's more to it. Luffy may trust me near _him_ but not around _Ace_ anymore." Looking up and catching Thatch's flabbergasted face, Marco went back to staring at the table as he thought over Izou's words to him. In a regretful voice, he bit out, "I already noticed the little brat would get twitchy if I got too close to the hothead before, yoi. Izou told me that the reason was because Luffy _thought_ I was taking Ace away the first time. Then I prevented him from getting to Sabo after he bit you, yoi."

' _I do not like where he is going with this…_ '

"Today… I not only _grabbed_ and _held_ the kid, but also kept him from going to the aid of Ace. _Then_ I tried to keep him away from his brother, yoi. _Again_!" Marco ran a hand over his face and leant back in his chair.

Thatch heard a timer go off and rushed to grab his brownies before they burnt. After seeing Marco walk in, he'd turned the temperature of the oven down. He'd known the First had come expecting to see him up and busying himself and would want to talk, but the chef hadn't wanted his precious brownies to burn in the meantime.

Marco waited for Thatch to finish and sit back at the table before he continued.

Grimly he muttered, "Now I find out that Strawhat is surprisingly choosy in his words…"

Thatch crossed his arms and sat back in his own chair. "What do you mean?"

"Ace's original question asked your reason for saving him. Luffy's question was about the reason _behind_ the reason, yoi." The chef nodded, wondering what the firebird was hinting at. "Thinking back on things Luffy has said, all of his statements and questions were probably specifically worded for one reason or another. Even if they didn't look it on the surface yoi."

"What are you getting at, birdbrain?" Marco let a bitter smile appear on his face.

Looking his brother in the eye, the First asked, "What did Sabo tell us his little brother said about attacking me, yoi?"

Thatch furrowed his brows in concentration, trying to remember what the top hatted blond had said to them. "That… He—Luffy—felt…bad about it?"

"Exactly," Marco sighed. At the Fourth's continued confusion he elaborated, "According to Sabo, Luffy 'felt bad' about biting me. Not that Luffy 'felt _sorry_ ' about doing so, yoi."

' _Oooh... Well shit._ ' Aloud, Thatch's response was a grim, "Damn." His brother snorted. Then the chef remembered the odd look Marco had in his eye during Luffy's panicked rant. "Hey, Marco? What was with the look you had before Ace took Luffy to calm the kid? You seemed worried about something…"

Said commander glanced at Thatch before flicking his eyes over to a corner of the room. "I heard Ace say something yoi. I won't say what, it could be nothing if I'm wrong."

"And if you're not?"

"….."

"Pops sure picked a hell of a set of new brothers for us."

"Yeah, yoi."

* * *

Come to find out the next day, Izou's prediction about Luffy letting Marco near Ace was wrong. Marco wasn't able to even _find_ Ace when he was with Luffy. The Brother Trio had been spending more time on deck recently and most Whitebeard Pirates knew that every few hours Ace would switch babysitting the runt with Sabo. That day, Luffy never left the top deck of the ship so Marco was a little astounded that he could only catch glimpses of the dark-haired duo when he made time to search for them.

The First Division Commander only really saw Strawhat when he was with Sabo. But as soon as he tried to approach the pair (getting within thirty-feet), Luffy would drag Sabo off to somewhere else.

Marco couldn't devote the amount of time he wished to in order to run down and confront the kid due to the growing stack of paper on his desk. He gave up all attempts to do so shortly after noon and locked himself in his cabin to try and complete everything. Hopefully this way the phoenix commander would free up enough time to catch Luffy (not literally, that's part of what got him into this mess) and apologize for his actions.

And _no_ , Marco was not sulking. He didn't _sulk_! No matter what any of his stupid brothers or sisters claimed. The Phoenix-zoan would stew and he would fret and he would worry. But he would never damn _sulk_ over something. Yes, Marco admitted (if only to himself and otherwise deny to anyone who asked) he might _brood_ if upset. That was different. Completely. It was _not_ sulking.

* * *

Thatch was having something of the opposite problem. Kind of.

There was no problem getting close to Luffy. If anything, the small raven-hair showed less reservation about maintaining distance between the Fourth Commander and the three brothers. The kid had at one point come right up to him and grabbed the sack of food the chef normally brought along when going to visit the trio.

The problem Thatch was experiencing involved Ace.

He had been hoping that the talk (shouting match) last night would lead to a breakthrough and help him get closer to the freckled teen. Wrong!

Ace wouldn't even acknowledge Thatch's _existence_. The fire-user refused to look at him, talk to him, or be near him. If Sabo was with Luffy and Ace when he went to chat with them, Ace would promptly move away to sit either up in the rigging or on a stack of crates or barrels that were lashed to the deck. The teen would keep the younger two brothers in sight and easy jumping distance—being the overprotective big brother he was—but made it very clear Thatch was unwelcome. Luffy couldn't even persuade the fire-user with _food_ to get closer (Thatch knew by now that food was a very good motivator for the trio).

When Sabo _wasn't_ around, and it was just Ace babysitting Luffy, the older raven would whisper something to the younger that had both running off at the sight of the cook. Thatch took comfort that it wasn't Luffy avoiding him those times. The kid would smile at him whenever he made to walk over. Once Ace spied Thatch, though, the teen would shoot him a fiery glare—haha, because Ace is _fire_!—and distract his little brother before making their exit.

That's not to say it didn't hurt the commander's heart every time this happened.

* * *

Izou had gone with Vista, Thatch and Marco early that morning to speak with Pops about the night before. Of course, they waited until the nurses had left before talking. Yes, they trusted their family with their lives so it wasn't because of that. This was just a very personal matter and the less people who knew, for now, the better.

Ace, Sabo and Luffy had agreed to speak with the four of them. Before last night, it was unheard for the brothers to do that.

Sure, Sabo had come to sit and talk with a large group of commanders and Captain Whitebeard that day Luff was running (read: riding) away from a pissed Ace. But he had stayed away and remained rather aloof in his attitude.

Luffy had talked with several of them (and stayed fairly close) that one time at the beginning of the brothers' stay. However, he had been very twitchy and looked ready to flee any second. Luffy had also been very untrusting and scampered away after only a handful of minutes and the talk itself was very impersonal.

All other times they deigned to sit and talk—aka, Luffy chatted inanely, Sabo remained distant and only offered an occasional comment, and Ace either scowled, glared, sniped at, or set the intruder on fire—it had been with only one or two people. And only commanders at that. The division members had quickly given up trying to speak with the trio after Ace made it clear he would _very happily_ try to turn the crewmembers into parodies of lit candles. One of Freckles' victims claimed they heard the teen tell one of his brothers to make a wish and blow out the fire that was the guy's hair. The Sixteenth Commander was just grateful there were no serious injuries from those displays of Ace's Devil Fruit powers, though he had a sneaking suspicion it had something to do with Sabo.

Therefore, Izou and his fellow Division Commanders had taken it as an unspoken sign of trust that the Trio had let them close and spoke so openly with them. It would be rude to break that by disclosing what they had learned to anyone else but their sworn father. After Marco and Thatch had spoken of their own late-night chat, Pops agreed that most of what they learned would stay between the five of them. The only exception would be Sabo's instructions/commands for how to deal with tiny brat if he had an episode and neither of his older siblings were present.

Vista also remarked on Sabo's interest in the orlop deck and Whitebeard ordered they place a watch down there in the event that the brothers were planning an escape. The _Moby Dick_ wasn't overly close to any islands at the moment, but they knew how stubborn the Trio (especially Ace) were therefor the extra precaution couldn't hurt.

So the rest of the day left Izou feeling both a little amused at and pitying towards Thatch and Marco. Luffy was being flighty around Birdy. Ace was being a recalcitrant brat and disregarding any and all attempts by Thatch to speak with the teen.

Thatch was still trying to get Ace to talk to him and Izou saw how every snub stung his sensitive brother. Marco had gone off to sulk—the bird-man did, indeed, _sulk_ and not whatever other word or excuse he came up with in place of the term—after numerous failures throughout the day to get near Luffy.

What neither of his brothers noticed, despite all assertions of their superior than normal observational skills, were the looks directed at each by Sabo and Luffy. Izou did.

Luffy would smile and act cheery whenever Thatch was looking at the boy, hopping about and being all chatty. The moment Thatch would walk away from him, Strawhat would get this odd look as he stared at the retreating commander's back. It would last a second or two at most before the kid returned to being a bright chatterbox and pull one of his brothers off to someplace. At first, the gunman thought he'd imagined the look. But when he caught it twice more he knew that it had been real.

This begged the question of whether the happy-go-lucky attitude the brat wore was a mask around Thatch. The chef had told Izou the runt was shit at lying. But acting was different than speaking, right? Luffy may not be able to _tell_ a lie very well, however that didn't necessarily discredit the theory the kid could _act_ the part.

Vista had 'hmmed' at the geisha's question during lunch. Saying that they didn't know the Little One or his brothers well enough to decide that yet.

Sabo on the other hand, seemed very aware of both his brother's reactions to the First and Fourth Commanders. He never interfered, though. Instead, the top hat wearing blond appeared to take more interest in how the commanders reacted to his siblings' antics. Izou would go as far to say that Sabo became mildly disappointed when Marco stopped showing up that day to try and talk with Luffy. He couldn't tell for sure because damn Blondie's poker face was almost better than Marco's.

* * *

Suffice to say, the only ones who experienced any normalcy in the Trio's behavior towards them were Vista, Izou and Whitebeard.

The Fifth Division Commander, sometimes accompanied by the Sixteenth, would occasionally wander over to chat with the Trio. Either to Sabo when Ace was playing with Luffy, Sabo and Luffy, or all three. Ace remained quiet whenever he was present and didn't try to kill them with glares during the chats. He would still scowl and remain grumpy the entire time the commanders were present, though.

Luffy would sometimes crawl over to sit in the grouchy fire-user's lap and continued conversing with Vista (and/or Izou) from his new seat. The heavy atmosphere around Ace (which grew without their awareness) would immediately dispel as the older teen wrapped an arm or two around the grinning shrimp. Ace's face or body language never gave anything away at these times, and still didn't even after Luffy went to him, so it left the Whitebeard Commanders curious as to how Luffy had caught on to Ace's shift in temperament.

Sabo remained polite and distant, as per usual, during the chats. It was only on occasion and when displeased by something Izou said or did that would cause a mildly cold glare to be thrown the geisha commander's way.

Whitebeard was pleased to see that Luffy didn't avoid coming to him (usually with Sabo in tow) for a chance at hearing stories from the captain's early days as a pirate. He would chat with the tiny brat and listen to the child prattle on about random things, switching from one topic to another at equally random intervals. The rambunctious brat couldn't seem to tell a story for the life of him to Newgate's amusement. However the giant captain noted that Sabo appeared to not only know exactly what his brother was saying, he was also able to keep up with the fluctuating flow of words. Whitebeard figured it might have something to do with being brothers to the bouncy brat and having heard Luffy's "stories" many times over the years.

Newgate also noticed that Sabo was present with Luffy to watch Ace's "assassination fails" (as Sabo had jokingly called them once to Thatch) twice now that day. He figured it had to do with the hotheaded brat's swim the day before and the chaos that led to. Ace also still refused to attack Whitebeard while Sabo and Luffy were nearby and would wait until his brothers had left the giant man's vicinity before launching an assault. After Attempt #37, which occurred around two in the afternoon, the brats disappeared to the stern deck for the rest of the day.

The Whitebeards and their captain occasionally heard shouts and loud thuds coming from the stern but never investigated. Nothing sounded alarmed about the cries, so they figured the boys were letting off steam from the day before and let the Trio be.

* * *

Ace, Sabo and Luffy kept this behavior up for a few days without any sign it was going to change.

Ace and Sabo were worried about Lu. The bad dreams the dragon was having were steadily growing worse as the days continued. It left the older pair at a loss as to how they could help their little brother. Now and again, Luffy was able to recount some small snippet he remembered but the dreams remained largely forgotten.

All three were starting to lose sleep, or at least extended peaceful rest, at night. Luffy experienced the worst dreams then and it would take a couple hours to get their little brother to settle enough to fall back into unconsciousness. With a poor diet also affecting them, the trio was beginning to wear down at the edges.

Lu asked if Sabo knew enough about the "deck with boats and water" for them to use it as a way to sneak him out. A trip down to the "orlop deck", Sabo reminded Luffy of the proper name, revealed a guard placed on it. The three shared a flare irritated frustration at the sight. It looked like they were stuck raiding the _Moby_ 's food storages and fishing to rake in their meals.

While the poor sleep and diet was causing Ace's narcolepsy to kick in more often, it was also beginning to really negatively affect the youngest brother. Luffy had trouble staying on their previous ship without extended time frolicking in his dragon-form when in a healthy state. The longest he'd been able to manage being thirty-two days.

Almost constant hunger, bad sleep and various levels of near continuous stress (from extreme to mild) had combined to drag the young dragon reaching his limit faster than anticipated. Yes, small stays in his hybrid forms helped as did the long bath here and there. Their games played topside, more intense versions of It and Go Seek, also helped Luffy satiate his needs.

It still couldn't compare to spending a night running around and actually _hunting_ in his full dragon-form. Luffy needed to be out and about, lazing or swimming, cavorting or sneaking as a dragon. A stolen hour or two here and there wouldn't cut it in the long run. He needed freedom, not be cooped up on a ship.

If Sabo and Ace couldn't get their brother off the ship soon, preferably within the next week, they would have to making plans for risky moves.

* * *

 **A/N: So not much happens this chapter. Mostly just talk at night plus the time-skip to fast-forward a few days to make way for the next chapter.**

 **To those of you who are asking:**

 **Yes. As stated in a previous chapter, Luffy's name is MONKEY D. Luffy**. **I think it should be self-explanatory that the kid is related to others of that name.**

 **Yes. Shanks and Garp will show up. Just not right now. It has only been 13 (thirteen) days people, no matter how abnormally and ridiculously long these chapters are.**

 **Yes. ASL Trio will run into Teach very soon. I will not say when the great backstabbing piece of crap makes his ultimate move as I am trying to line up a few things before then. The actual chapter (and couple of following chapters) of the backstabbery (leave my new word alone, it is real because I say it is and because it is 2:30am) will be very action-y with lots of shit going on. Hopefully, my plans won't burst into glittery, fiery explosions and rain chaos down upon the world.**

 **No. There was no bestiality involved with Luffy's conception. His mother, like him, could change her shape to that of a Human. She didn't marry Dragon, though Dragon is aware of Luffy and what he is. As well as what his mother was. (No more will be said on this for now) :P**

 **Ummm…..hmmm…. Can't think of anything else for now….**

 **Ah! Wait! Might be getting a Beta Reader to help with chapter construction (and grammar checks because I am _still_ finding crap in previous ones that I overlooked the first several times) so will see how that goes. Please pray to the gods of chocolate chip cookies and chocolate milk that this works! (Yes, I have a mild obsession with chocolate. Shut up. Don't judge me.)**


	11. Brothers' Thoughts, Schemes, and Plans!

**A/N: Holy shit thank you for the great responses to the last chapter. Wasn't sure how that was going to be received since it was mostly one giant-ass extended scene. Anyway, thank you faithful followers of this story and new recruits! Love the support and comments being made. Sorry everything seems to be moving so slow. I groan every time I look at the damn word count vs number of chapters for this story. Totally didn't mean for something like that to happen.**

 **And thanks for the wonderful support of my new word: backstabbery! If frickin' "LOL" can make it into the official damn English dictionary (and what a pathetically sad day that was) so can "backstabbery", by gods! At least it sounds like an actual damn word!**

 **While we're at it, we should also add "chalant". Because there is "nondescript" and "descript", so why can't there be a "chalant" to accompany "nonchalant"? It isn't fair, I tell you!**

 **In other news, I am seriously considering founding a cult based on the worship of the God of Chocolate and its godly pet Chaos. Because 'chaos' is fun to stir into being and is always great to sit back and watch while eating/drinking chocolate. I have half a mind to announce the start of this awesome cult with sending humongous graham crackers, bars of chocolate and marshmallows into space. We would then take out lawn chairs and sit under special umbrellas drinking chocolate milk while watching the world go crazy over the mystery of millions/billions of s'mores raining down on the people from space. It is perfect! Mwahahahahahaha!**

 **As to _why_ it took so long to get this damned thing posted, please refer to bottom A/N.**

 **"Hello"—Luffy speaking while in dragon form**

 **" Hello"—Luffy speaking in own language while in dragon form**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Brothers' Thoughts, Schemes and Plans! Marco's Struggles**

* * *

Sabo fingered a piece of his bangs contemplatively. His curly hair was getting ridiculously long (touching his shoulders firmly by this point) and it was starting to become a pain to deal with. Ace and Luffy's also needed a good trimming. His two brothers were starting to look more like shaggy dogs than people. The only grooming Sabo was doing at the moment was the occasional shaving. Ace never bothered because he just made his flames eat the little hairs that tried to grow into a beard. ' _Lucky bastard._ '

Though both kept the facial hair to a minimum, Ace was doing for more personal reasons. His older brother didn't want to look like his father. While primarily out of hate, Ace also did to avoid recognition. He may have been born almost two years after Gol D. Roger's death and the hunt for the supposed 'Pirate King Heir' conducted by the World Government, but if there was any hint that the child had survived the Marines would be after them in full force once again. At least Ace being two years younger than he should have been helped in throwing off any who looked too close.

At least, Sabo was thankful that they had met Luffy when they did. Meeting the younger boy had healed something in Ace Sabo was sure he himself wouldn't have been able to touch. It was also thanks to Luffy that Ace no longer felt so much guilt about his mother's death. Not to say it wasn't still there, because it most assuredly was; Ace just didn't let it consume him as much as it used to.

When Luffy had learned of Ace's feelings regarding his mother's death, and found out how she had died, the dragon first told Ace he was thankful for what Rouge did. The older raven, predictably, through a raging fit over Lu's statement. He only shut up when Luffy told Sabo and Ace how the dragon's own mother died. Luffy then told Ace that his mother must have been "very pretty" because his mother had said people who can love another that much glowed brightly with it. Sabo had tried to explain that Lu's mom probably didn't mean that in the literal sense but stopped when the small child turned this blinding, knowing smile on him.

Sabo started paying more attention to some of the things Luffy said from that point on. Noting how the younger's words may sometimes sound shallow or stupid in the surface but held a certain ring to them that hinted at a deeper logic.

Luffy still said plenty of stupid shit though. Some from lack of knowledge or naivety. Some to get a rise out of a person. Then some because a hole had spontaneously appeared in the mental filter that sat between what went _through_ his head and what came _out_ his mouth.

Wait… What had Sabo been thinking about before? Oh, right. Haircuts.

 _'I need more sleep_ ,' he thought. He let his head thump onto the open book on the table before him. He scowled at the unfocused image of a seabird on the page his forehead rested on. _'What are we doing wrong?'_

From what Sabo had been able to work out between comparing his notes on Luffy's last official measurements and the ratios he researched on bird mass and size versus wingspan it all pointed to the same thing. Luffy _should_ be able to fly now. Yet every practice the dragon could barely hover for a total of five minutes.

Were the muscles still not developed enough? But he had been gliding for several years now. Surely that had built up some strength in them. Or did actual flight use a slightly different set of muscles than when gliding? Diagrams of birds could only help so much. Their muscular and skeletal structure differed from that of Luffy's. Even the few books Sabo had collected detailing the anatomy of different species of dragons differed from Luffy.

Sabo groaned. _'Leave it to Lu to be the one species almost nothing is known about…'_

Though dragons were rare, there was a definite pattern to the various species in the world. Unless they were wyrms, dragons always had two pairs of limbs. They either had a set of legs and a set of wings or two sets of legs. The largest known species were titan dragons, followed by those that lived in the sea, then the ones that could fly in the air.

Titans never had wings, only two pairs of legs as they grew far too big and heavy to ever gain the ability to fly. There were a few sea-going species; some possessing two pairs of legs, others a pair of legs and fin-like wings. The species that could fly all had the same distinct set of characteristics: one pair of wings and one pair legs. Like birds. The number of different flying species also outnumbered the previous two types.

It left a sick feeling in Sabo's gut when he realized the reason why. All the fliers were smaller than their cousins. This, and the fact they could fly, meant they were better able to avoid capture by humans or other possible enemies. The titans only survived of the land-locked species because of their size and power. The few sea-dwellers that had made it did so for the same reasons and they had more room to hide.

Lu's species had been the largest of the fliers and also the most powerful of the dragon-kind. Like the world had acknowledged Sea Kings as the natural rulers of the oceans and the deep (hence the name), Luffy's kind had been similarly dubbed as 'Sky Kings'. That their own language attested to this—the name _Drakkón_ meaning something akin to 'scale king/ruler' as Lu had told he and Ace—proved they were the undisputed ruling power above the waves.

Until something happened during the Void Time which changed all of that. Now, Sky Kings are thought of as being only legends that even the most devout Slayer (a hunter of dragon species) had trouble believing existed. Very few would follow up on a rumor of someone spotting what they believed to be the mythical/legendary beast. Of those Slayers, most were ones employed by the Government to check out the claims. It didn't leave much guesswork in Sabo's mind as to who was to blame for Luffy's kin going almost extinct. Then again, many Slayers were on the Government's payroll these days.

The brothers' current issues with Lu's lack of flight stemmed from so little knowledge about his kind being available and how different his body was from the rest of the dragon species. Drakkón were the only species to have not two pairs of limbs but _three_ ; always possessing two sets of legs in addition to a pair of wings. What also didn't help was that it was common for even blood-related members to have different body-styles. Some were like Luffy in that they walked on all fours—Lu could walk on his hind-legs like a bear, but it didn't feel as natural or comfortable—while others would walk on two legs and use the front pair as a set of arms and hands. Lu had even said his mother told him she once had a friend whose wings were used to help them walk, acting as a front pair of legs instead of the smaller set of arms they sported(*).

 _'It's Luffy, of course he couldn't be like a damn bird! Preferably a seagull. Those are plentiful and easy to catch to study._ ' Sabo frowned at his chaotic, wandering thoughts. _'How did I get from wanting to cut my hair to catching seagulls?'_

Yeah **.** He really needed more sleep. Luffy had a really bad nightmare last night and none of them managed to get to sleep for another— _long_ —hour afterwards. Ace had woken up a little before dawn and, finding Luffy to be in the midst of a bad dream, woke him then Sabo up to go watch the sunrise atop the ship's figurehead. Or 'Luffy's Spot' as they had come to call it.

The claimed seat of the future Pirate King (because Sabo and Ace _knew_ with Luffy's bull-headed stubbornness he would achieve that title) calmed the dragon and always brightened his mood. If either Ace or Sabo lost sight of their brother they would search there first and foremost. Then somewhere up high, if need be. But Luffy was strangely attached to the ship's bow and Sabo figured it had to do with the 'whispers' their little brother claimed to hear.

 _'And Luffy can't lie to save his life so there must be_ something _he can hear but we can't._ '

What an unnerving thought that was, too. But Luffy had said that the 'Whispers' wasn't a Bad thing so both the older brothers had let the subject drop until Luffy brought it up again.

The seventeen-year-old sighed at his wandering mind again. The blond moved his head to rest a cheek against the printed pages and stare at a book case on the room's wall. Maybe he could nab Lu and Ace for a pleasant nap? They could go down to the very bottom area of the ship so Luffy could laze about in his dragon form. The younger's black scales would blend completely with the darkness down there. So unless someone came with a light, and they weren't Marco, nobody would be any the wiser. Ace and his narcolepsy would probably appreciate the gesture too.

 _'Yeah, that sounds like a good plan…_ '

With that in mind, Sabo pushed himself up and away from the table. Closing the book on bird species and the neighboring one detailing different bird's skeletal anatomy, he put them back on the shelf from which he'd plucked them. After checking to make sure nothing else was left out, Sabo picked up his hat and goggles and placed them on his head before exiting the room to grab his brothers.

* * *

Luffy glared at Ace. Ace glared right back.

/( _Irritated Listen!_ ) Get down, Lu!/

/( _Stubborn Refuse!_ ) No! Like up high!/ Ace scowled at his little brother as Luffy turned back to watching Whitebeard. The captain pretended not to notice the heated standoff between brothers and continued on with his story.

The giant pirate had been surprised when the cheeky brat left his older brother's side, leaning against a lounging Stefan (twenty-feet away), and boldly jumped up to perch at the end of his chair's left arm. He wondered if the Strawhat Brat chose that spot on purpose. It was closer to the large oxygen tank placed next to his seat that helped him breathe easier and one speedy jump would allow Luffy to knock it over. This, in turn, would yank and dislodge the tubes connected to the tank that fed Newgate the extra oxygen.

Implied threat or happenstance, Whitebeard had smiled when Luffy settled and stared up at him, waiting for him to continue speaking. Ace immediately began protesting Luffy's change of location, fire dancing across the freckled teen's form sporadically as testament to their User's discomfort with the sudden situation. It took Luffy staring at the Captain with an odd and somewhat blank look—Newgate getting the rather peculiar sensation something hidden and deep within was being closely scrutinized—before announcing "It's okay, Ace." That the stubborn pyro actually _listened_ and dropped his loud complaints in favor of a few grumbles before falling silent (switching to glaring threateningly at the captain in silence) astonished the giant man. Not that Whitebeard showed this.

Despite his words, Luffy sat rigidly while closely watching every move the Captain made. Newgate made sure to keep his left arm stationary and his hand placed on his knee, only making small movements with the right. He was happy that the brat trusted him enough to sit this close, not having done so since that meeting held over half a month ago. Unlike that time, however, he was going to make sure that he didn't accidentally scare or startle the little brat.

Luffy would sometimes turn and send a defiant glare of his own at Ace (causing the older raven to scowl). At one point Lu let the giant man out of his sight completely to face his big brother and give a mental retort. Whitebeard would fully admit to feeling a small burst of mingled pride, joy and sense of accomplishment when Strawhat did this.

After close to an hour of the giant Human making no potentially threatening moves and remaining jovial in nature, the dragon fully let go of his declining wariness and relaxed on his chosen seat. Openly regarding the huge man and his tales with an overwhelming curiosity and small sense of awe. This seemed to make the Captain happy because his eyes had a different shine to them and Luffy caught an increased sense of pleasure coming from the other.

Lu really liked Giant Old Man. He had a comforting presence that was similar to Shanks' (though, that might be because they were both alphas) while also somehow reminding Luffy of his own brothers. Captain Whitebeard was also _huge_ which was really cool because he had never known a Human could get _that big!_ Sitting next to the giant man sort of reminded Luffy of when he used to be with his mother. Both were _bigbigbig_ and made the young dragon feel very small; but not in a bad way because they would protect the small one.

/( _Sorry Notbemean_ ) Until he finds out what we are…/ Luffy tensed slightly at Ace's soft comment. He must have thought that last bit a little louder than he imagined for Ace to pick up on it.

Whitebeard slowly halted his latest story as he watched the small child stiffen and turn to face the fire-brat. He internally frowned at the unusual solemn light in the dark orbs before they were lost to his view.

/Don't know that. ( _Hopeful Maybe?_ ) He could be like Shanks! Shanks still likes me! Shanks and his _sídna_ would like Sabo and Ace, too! / Ace stared at his little brother, flicking a cautious glance at the giant behind him before resettling on Luffy's slightly pleading face.

/They may both be _kýn'vráls_ and Emperors, Lu, but that doesn't mean they will react the same. They are still two different people. / Lu frowned a little hearing this and pulled his hat down on his head. Ace's lips formed a small, regretful smile as he finished /( _Sorry Knownotwanttohear_ ) It's sad but there aren't many in this world who would accept us like Shanks did you./

Whitebeard saw the straw-hatted brat slump a little where he perched at seeing Ace's melancholic expression. _'I'm starting to see what Marco and Thatch mean when they talk about silent conversations…_ '

Wanting to steer the suddenly somber atmosphere to a lighter note, Whitebeard asked a question he'd been meaning to bring up for a while now.

"Brat," Luffy looked up at the giant Captain, still fingering the rim of his precious Hat, "that hat looks very familiar to me. Where did you get it?"

"A really cool pirate named Shanks gave it to me!" Luffy bounced in place, spirits restored at the mention of his treasure, smiling up at the Human who now wore a face of mild confusion and shock.

"Shanks? You mean the Red-Haired Brat?" The dragon cocked his, still holding onto his hat.

Giant Banana Mustache Man's question confused him a little. So far, he'd only heard the Captain refer to Ace, Sabo and he by the term 'brat' (Luffy never corrected him because the man didn't say it like they were beneath him, it seemed more a nickname of sorts). _'But Shanks isn't young or small like us, so is it not the same Human?'_

"I dunno about 'brat'… But Shanks _is_ Captain of the Red-Hair Pirates! Sabo says he's an Emperor too!" Luffy paused at the scent of shock coming from the Human. Looking up and seeing the surprise stamped on Whitebeard's face, the dragon asked curiously, "Do _you_ know Shanks, Giant Old Man Banana Mustache?"

Ace tensed and sat up straight as he examined the Captain. The man obviously knew Luffy's Captain friend. More than just by reputation, too, it seemed. Lu had that impression apparently as well.

/( _Happy Surprised Looklook!_ ) Ace! He knows Shanks too! See! Giant Old Man _is_ a Good Human! /

Ace shot a scowl at the back of an excited Luffy's head. /( _Caution Careful So?_ ) Lu, just 'cause the Giant Bastard knows Shanks doesn't mean he's friends with the guy. They're both Emperors so they're probably enemies.( _Calm Settle Bestill!_ )/

Luffy settled down but didn't wipe the huge grin off his face.

"Yes, brat, I am very familiar with the little upstart. The Red-Hair Whelp and his lot stop by on occasion."

Luffy scowled at the names this person was calling is idol. "Shanks is awesome! Don't call him mean things, Giant Old Man! I'll kick your ass!"

 _'Oh hells, he's_ arguing _with a damn Emperor! And it's fuckin'_ Whitebeard _of all people!'_ Ace groaned and let his head fall into his palms. Completely resigned with the ball of chaos that was his little brother.

"Gurararara! You're a hundred years too young to think about challenging me, snot-nosed brat," Newgate laughed. Ace just groaned again and hung his head between his knees.

"Lu, what are you shouting about?" Said boy shouted in delight as he spun and launched himself at his blond brother.

Whitebeard shook his head at the rapid change in mood; how the brothers never got whiplash from the shifts in temperament he may never know.

Ace glanced up in time to see Sabo get knocked to his ass by the now exuberantly chatting straw hat wearer. He smirked when Sabo plugged the hole spewing run-together sentences and calmly glanced over at the freckled teen.

"Feel like a nap?" Ace and Luffy took one hard look at the blond and swiftly agreed.

Smiling, Sabo stood up with Luffy (the smaller climbing around his big brother to settle on his back) before walking over to give Ace a hand up. Stefan also got to his feet, stretched, then padded over to lay at his Alpha's feet. With Ace's fire emerging to make its customary loops about the younger duo's limbs, the Trio exited the deck for the dark bowels of the ship.

* * *

"Pops, have you seen Luffy yoi?" The captain quickly hid his bottle of sake as Marco walked over.

"Yes, both the Devil Fruit brats were here listening to some stories not too long ago. The blond one came and said something about a nap before they all left." The phoenix's lips twitched to form a hint of a frown at the news.

"Dammit. I keep missing them. I swear Strawhat knows when I'm coming lately, yoi."

Whitebeard frowned as he replied, "It was not his doing this time, I assure you, my son."

"I didn't say that, yoi. Just… It's been _four days_ already and-Oi!" Marco had glanced up and caught something… _different_ about his captain. Crossing his arms and staring at the man with suspicion lacing his being, the blond drawled, "Either something happened or you're trying to hide sake from the nurses—and _me_ —again. Talk, yoi."

The giant man scowled at his son's (correct) words regarding the sake before letting his features take on a hint of smugness—he knew the First and Fourth Commanders were having difficulty with the brothers recently.

"The little cheeky Strawhat Brat sat next to me today," Newgate said with a proud—and yes, Marco _could see_ there was a smug air to it—grin.

He stared at his father for a solid minute before turning away and scowling (though only Whitebeard could tell there was scowl present at all). "Typical. Thatch and I are going backwards and everyone else is making progress, yoi."

"Gurarara! Come now, Marco, don't be like that!" His grin slowly fell when his son's expression only turned a hair grimmer. "Son."

Marco twisted his head to look up at his captain over his shoulder. Newgate gestured for the smaller man to come sit in his usual spot where the chair's arm met its back. The commander wanted to refuse, opened his mouth to say as much. But the words died after his father-figure sent him a stern look that had Marco grudgingly agreeing to the not-so-much-a-request-but-not-an-order-either. As Marco settled himself into the crook of the large chair, Whitebeard silently ordered the numerous eavesdroppers milling about the deck nearby to get back to work with a less than subtle firm look.

Turning back to look at Marco, the giant man asked, "Now, what is bothering you, my son? I am sure it is not just about the Strawhat Brat suddenly avoiding you." When his son remained silent, staring pensively out across the deck, Whitebeard sat back and also watched his children at work.

It was several minutes later that Marco finally answered the captain's question.

"I can't apologize to the little shrimp if he won't let me near him, yoi. I'd hate to think I lost whatever trust he was willing to give because of my actions."

"That's not everything though." Marco sighed but nodded his head.

Leaning it back to rest against the chair's frame, the First Commander continued quietly, "Thatch and I are also getting a little worried, yoi. He said all three brothers are looking under the weather lately and that both the raven-haired brothers are looking a little thin. Luffy more than Ace, yoi. We can't tell with Sabo because he's always wearing a coat."

"Hmmm… I have noticed the older two brats to be less energetic the past few days. The loud runt has also been acting more…rambunctious," Whitebeard supplied.

Marco huffed. "That's one way of saying it. The youngest now growls at anyone, who isn't Thatch, Vista or Izou, when they get close yoi. But those three bring food when talking to the Trio, so…" He threw a side-glance at the giant captain. "Why did you say 'rambunctious', yoi?"

Newgate chuckled. "Your brother, Izou, was talking to the fire-brat yesterday. The cheeky runt came flying in and tackled the brat, knocking him out."

"What yoi? Why did he do that?"

"According to Izou, the Strawhat Runt was going on about playing a game until he realized that his brother was unconscious. The cheeky brat started to complain about him 'not being any fun' before dragging the larger brat off." The blond commander just stared at the large captain. Whitebeard laughed at his son's face then said, "Little runt is also getting very loud whenever the three camp out at the stern."

"Uh-huuuh…" The Phoenix-zoan went back to staring out over the deck and blankly tracking his siblings' movements.

* * *

"He asleep?"

Sabo leaned over and quickly tapped the small black dragon's nose twice. The only reaction was a briefly wrinkled muzzle and a twitch of the long tail wrapped around an angled support-beam.

"He's out," the blond replied with a gentle smile. His face grew serious when sea-blue eyes returned to the open journals lying between himself and Ace.

The only source of light was one of Ace's Wisps, casting a soft blue light over the three brothers. Well, almost over all three. Luffy was lying at the fringe of the illuminated area, allowing his dark mass to blend seamlessly with the surrounding shadows. He was in a smaller dragon form, topping out at about ten-feet long. Any larger and he wouldn't have been able to fit into the spaces between supports—comfortably, that is. Sabo and Ace had sat a little ways off from him so that the Wisp wouldn't reveal their brother should anyone come down here and catch them. Luffy had been content with just dozing and watching the older two talk.

Now, Sabo stared at his journals with Ace, both trying to think of a way to help the youngest sibling. The middle brother had finished adding sketches of birds and their different wing-associated body structures to one of the notebooks. It was open next to one that had similar diagrams etched onto its pages, only these were of dragons' wings. A third book lay partially on top of these two in which Sabo had sketched out possible muscle- and skeletal-based structures that Luffy had.

Ace flipped through another of the blond's sketchbooks. The dark leather cover with a small lizard stamped into it denoting the book to be one that held drawings of large lizards and titan dragons.

"Okay, what about this one? This 'flying' lizard seems to have a giant muscle connected to each wing-fin that…it… Waves, your writing is too flowy. I can't read this shit," Ace muttered, holding the open journal out for Sabo to examine.

 _'Hmmm… No, these seem to respond with certain twitches in the lizard's longissimus thoracis and maybe even the iliocostalis thoracis muscles._ ' Aloud he simply said, "No, Lu's muscles seem more developed than this one's. He likely utilizes a different set specialized for flight that's closer to birds."

His older brother groaned and flopped onto his back, letting the journal flop onto the set Sabo was currently cross-examining. An irritated scowl flitted across the blond's face at the action.

Closing the notebook and setting it off to the side, Sabo lightly scolded /Please be careful with these. If they get too damaged _I_ am the one who gets to copy everything inside into a new book. /

/( _Sorry Frustrated Didn'tmeanit Forgive?_ )/

"We're close enough to not need to 'talk' like that, you know. And yes, I accept your apology." Sabo went back to studying his sketches and ignored Ace's light puff of air. He didn't need to see it to know the older had the beginnings of an amused grin on his face.

/( _Easy Lesseffort Simple_ )/

"Translation: you are being a lazy bastard," was the offhand remark. Ace laughed, the sound a touch breathy and making it seem he was in need of sleep. Sabo knew it was just from feeling low on energy.

Speaking of… The blond glanced over his shoulder at their youngest sibling.

 _'Lu needs to eat more… He's too skinny_ ,' Sabo mused. A frown marred his features as he thought of how thin the dragon had looked before being enveloped in the surrounding shadows. Honestly, his body may be specially built to be light _and_ made of rubber, but Sabo doubted Lu weighed much more than 110 or so pounds right now. A healthy weight would've had their little brother sitting closer to 150 (though not much higher).

"You're projecting, Sabo. Any louder and you might wake Lu up," the fire-user grumbled, sitting up as he spoke. "We'll fish some mo—" Blue snapped to meet grey.

"That's not going to cut it, Ace," Sabo hissed at his brother, trying to keep his voice down. Luffy never liked it when he and Ace had _real_ fights or arguments and the blond didn't want risk waking the younger to witness another battle of wills.

Ace snapped back, "It's been working fine so far!"

"We need more than just what we're able to catch fishing, or raiding this ship's pantries, or what those three commanders bring whenever they wish to speak with us!" Sabo gestured at himself then both his raven-haired brothers as he continued his low rant, "Even _I_ am hungry and I am not a self-combusting Human or a growing dragon! You are losing muscle tone and experiencing more narcoleptic attacks as of late. Luffy is burning through any fat reserves he may have _left_ and is starting to lose his muscle. I am finding myself low on energy and sometimes zoning out."

"Then we fish more and take more when we raid these bastards' food stores," his brother barked. The small Wisp's flames pulsed and waved agitatedly in time with Ace's temper. At least the older brother was keeping the level of brightness consistent, otherwise the shifting light could wake Luffy up.

Sabo groaned at the other teen's stubbornness and grabbed his head in frustration, fingers burying themselves in golden curls. "Gaaaaah, _Ace_. Do you not get it? As Devil Fruit users, you and Lu already need more calories— _need to eat more_ —to sustain yourselves. Both your abilities cause you to burn through your energy reserves at a rapid rate. That's _not_ including the fact Luffy is _fledging_ now and needs _even more_ to eat! And when he flies, Ace? He will need that much more! If he ever gets there because trying to fly right now is draining him."

 _That_ seemed to take some of the wind out of his sibling's sails. Ace still looked as if he were about to try and contradict Sabo's words, however. Sabo sighed.

At this point he would have to deal a low blow to Ace in order to make his brother back down. The blond _hated_ having to pull this card against the fire-user, but he saw no alternative at the moment. Sabo took some solace in knowing Ace's love for their little brother always trumped the older's pride and pig-headedness.

Staring directly into Ace's eyes, Sabo flatly stated, "He's starving, Ace." Cue the expression that was comparable to being stuck on a sinking ship. For a Fruit-user.

Shocked and sounding like a kicked dog, Ace stuttered, "Wh-what?"

Keeping his voice neutral but serious, Sabo answered, "You are _both_ slowly starving. Luffy is just fading at a faster rate."

Ace looked behind Sabo with eyes full of apology, regret, remorse and profound guilt and a lost expression contorting his freckled features. Those same emotions bubbled along the older two's weaker mental bond, brushing up against the blond's mind. He fought the urge to wince at the repercussions of his words.

/( _Calm Fine Isokay Love Getbetter Notatfault_ )/ Aloud, Sabo gently said, "It's not as bad as it sounds yet, _Atce_. Luffy just needs a few good meals in him and he'll be fine again. _We_ could use it as well." His brother calmed down hearing that and nodded in reluctant agreement.

Glancing behind Sabo at Luffy and then shifting his gaze back to the blond, Ace added, "What about the rest of the pirates? Luffy still can't tolerate crowds very well and we aren't much better either."

 _'At least he's willing to admit it_ ,' Sabo thought. "We can maybe try to convince them to do a repeat of that first morning we woke up here. Luffy responded fairly well to that." Ace still had a troubled look though.

"Uh… What about," the fire-user fidgeted a little, the blue Wisp casting a light purple tint to his cheeks, "that cook guy? Luffy only really trusts him to get us food and… He's the only _cook_ that got an 'Okay' and everything, but…" Sabo eyed the older teen, patiently waiting for him to continue only to find Ace was now trying to fry a hole in the ship's hull with his visual power alone. (Not that Ace _had_ such an ability, though it looked like he was trying to develop one lately.)

Then it clicked. The gentleman pirate examined his brother and had to resist the urge to smirk. Or frown. Possibly both.

Ace's cheeks were purplish because he was blushing! Ace was— _is!_ — _embarrassed_.

 _'Of course he is_ ,' the blond mused. _'He was tired that night. Exhausted and—Ace being Ace—was confused by these Whitebeards' actions. Especially Mr. Thatch's actions. He got frustrated, snapped, and blurted things out that he didn't mean to share._ '

Sabo and Ace hated showing weakness. _Especially Ace_. Showing weakness to an enemy was just asking for them to kill you once they were no longer in sight. Or use it to blackmail your ass to kingdom come. The three of them have experienced both sides of that.

But Thatch nor Marco (because Sabo just knew there was high chance the cook shared that conversation with the Whitebeard First Division Commander) had acted on that new information. Sabo had been keeping a sharp eye on both commanders—along with the leaders of the Fifth and Sixteenth Divisions just to be safe—and neither's behavior had changed. At least, not in regards to Ace. Both were still trying to connect with his older brother the same as before; reaching out to Ace in an effort to draw him into their fold. Mr. Vista and Mr. Izou were recent additions to this group (which included Whitebeard), but they were also making attempts to get Ace to open up.

The talk the four had with him and his brothers three nights ago had been…surprising. Ace and Sabo didn't expect any of the Whitebeard Commanders to step into Ace's fire. The flames may have been of the Sensor type but they could still burn just as easily as any normal fire. Luffy was happy that the pirates had done so and also laughed (in their minds) at his and Ace's shock over the act.

Of course, if any _were_ to give the act a try Sabo had pegged the correct person to give it a go first. Ace and Luffy agreed with the blond's guess because Marco was a _bird of fire_ so it would be strange if the man balked at the thought. Thatch had been surprising in how willing he was to walk in the flames—even making the comment about how the three should have just _said_ to do it. That one threw the brothers (Luffy included this time) for a small loop.

They didn't put much stalk in words usually. It was too easy for people to say something and not follow through. Too easy to ignore what was said or cover up intentions behind falsities. Too easy to forget a word or promise and the feelings that were evoked. Sabo and Ace trusted themselves to never look at just the spoken word; they had learned back on Goa (and eventually elsewhere they had gone) that it was too fragile and easily broken. Unless Luffy checked the speaker, all three listened to was said to them with doubt and suspicion.

Actions were better. They were harder to twist. Harder to lie about. Harder to hide true intents. Harder to forget. An action held far more weight than a mere word on any occasion (excluding Luffy, but he was special and didn't count).

So Thatch and his words which essentially said "why didn't you just _say_ to walk through the fire"? That had been an extreme shock to Sabo, Ace and Luffy. The man had implied he would have done so from the very beginning if one of them had instructed him to do so. Luffy hadn't contradicted the cook's implications which stunned Sabo even further. The Fourth Commander had been completely serious behind that carefree expression being worn.

 _'Truly, who puts_ that much faith _in words spoken from someone who is trying to kill your leader and has also set you, yourself, on fire?'_ That the Phoenix-man had also silently agreed (confirmed by Lu) didn't help Sabo or Ace's state of confusion and surprised disbelief. Which had, predictably, made him and Ace feel on edge after briefly dropping their guard.

Then, with Ace still reeling from the day's previous events and now trying to come to terms with the more recent one, their dragon brother decides Ace should talk to Thatch _right then!_ Sabo had protested initially however Lu had been adamant in his demand, stating Ace needed to do it to feel better. It may confuse Ace further and make him unhappy _now_ but Lu assured Sabo their brother would benefit best from Thatch if the topic were addressed immediately. Because Luffy's "gut told him so". It was only dropped after Ace refused Lu's tries at persuading the older raven to express his confusion to the cook.

But Sabo and Ace didn't really do emotions. That was _Luffy's_ area of expertise. For a reason!

He and Ace had grown up hiding away their pain and sadness— _loneliness_ —behind a mask of anger, distrust and hatred. Anything else was roughly shoved aside and locked away from sight. Yes, they felt joy and happiness. But always under a cloud of stagnant worry and slight fear. His and Ace's shared goal of setting out to sea was more of a shared pretense. The desire for freedom, to chase it across the waves, was a shallow means of _escape_.

Escape the island. Escape those who knew them. Escape from the world. Escape from _themselves_.

They were best friends and Sabo knew this fabricated goal of 'freedom' was the same for Ace as it was for him. That Ace understood what they were really trying to do was _run away_ from the things they never talked about or looked too closely at. Sabo tried to fake away the emptiness he had felt just like Ace.

Best friends who were nothing more than cracked mirrors. Two kids that couldn't— _wouldn't_ —look at each other for fear of exposing the jagged flaws and edges that covered them. For fear of being cut and hurt by those same cracks should they touch. For fear of destroying what was already shattered.

So when Luffy brought up the need for Ace to ask his question—to risk getting an answer Ace might fear—again, Sabo remembered and reminded his older brother. He and Ace were terrible with emotions. Sabo would try to analyze them and make some attempts to understand. Ace would rather avoid them than drag them into the light. But that was _okay_.

Because they had _Luffy_!

A dragon— _their_ Light—who was clumsy and had trouble saying what was on his mind (in a way people understood). A dragon who was rejected and feared by the world and darker than the night's shadows. A clumsy and innocent little boy who saw two broken and cracked mirrors. Who _smiled_ at the splintered images reflected in them. Who wasn't afraid to _touch_ them. Who found something thrown away and something unwanted and _treasured_ them. A little dragon-boy who _laughed_ and _loved_ and _promised_ the mirrors they weren't broken even if they had cracks and flaws. That even if the mirrors fell apart they _wouldn't shatter_ because he would always put them back together.

Keeping Lu out of the loop, Sabo gently and firmly reminded Ace of this. If their Light felt this was something Ace needed to do then he should do it. Ace had hesitantly agreed and Sabo left his brothers to sort things out. He was worried for his older brother; 'watched' their connection for any sign of trouble while hiding his own misgivings. When he felt a clear rise in Ace's turmoil and Luffy's spike of mild irritation Sabo had reached out to see if everything was alright. When Luffy made the joke of things being like a ping-pong match, Sabo felt some of his tension ease and a sense of calm ripple over him. If Lu was willing to make a joke like that then everything would be fine.

When Ace came back from that conversation with Thatch and openly shared his feelings with the two younger brothers, Sabo had initially felt confusion, worry, disbelief, shock, embarrassment, and traces of anger and mild mortification. Underneath, however, Sabo sensed a small stirring of hope, wonder and increasing curiosity from the fire-user. Luffy had smiled at his brothers in a way that said 'I'm happy you listened and it doesn't make sense now but it will, I promise'. And Luffy never promises things lightly.

Looking at Ace now, Sabo felt a sigh bubble up over how things turned out. Yeah, Lu was right in that Ace would have trouble understanding. Sabo was at least glad the cook had been honest in his answer and happy over the answer itself. Ace _needed_ to hear something like that (even if the older teen didn't believe it). Once again, they had their bouncy ball of rubber to thank.

But… Sabo now needed to address Ace's issue of embarrassed pride without Lu's help. Thankfully the blond had been watching his brothers' interactions (or lack thereof) with the different commanders. Specifically, the First and Fourth Commanders.

Smirking, Sabo projected to Ace /( _Fine Listen Idea Confident_ )/. Though his brother didn't turn to face him, the Wisp's erratic behavior died down to a mild restlessness. Ace's own body had relaxed at the suggestion of Sabo possessing a plan and the fire-user shared a growing sense of curiosity underneath the dimming embarrassment and shame.

Without pause, Sabo launched into a description of the last few days. Sharing his observations of the commanders' behavior in the face of he and his brothers' own. Ace listened, turning to fully look at the blond a handful of minutes into the discussion.

"I should've figured you were scheming something," he mumbled, resting his chin in the hand propped up by the elbow planted on his knee.

Ace was right, Sabo normally would have made the two confront their problems or at least scold them for being so childish. The blond would also have reassured Luffy that the commanders weren't going to take his big brothers away from the dragon (not that Sabo or Ace would condone such a thing in the first place). Instead, Sabo had allowed the situation to fester.

Sabo only grinned at Ace's comment before continuing with the details of his plan. His older brother remained silent throughout its entirety knowing that the blond preferred having everything laid out before answering possible questions. The fire-teen tensed and displayed the expected displeasure over some of his and Lu's roles in Sabo's scheme, but remained quiet until Sabo finally finished.

Ace waited a few beats before grumbling, "Can't say I'm happy with it but I don't suppose we have much choice, huh?"

"Not especially. This way, we maintain the illusion of possessing more power over the situation than we actually have. If things fall the way they should then we will come out on top and perhaps gain more than we previously had," Sabo shrugged.

His brother sighed then looked down and chuckled as he ran a hand through dark, wavy hair. When Ace glanced up and saw what was likely a puzzled expression on Sabo's face, the chuckles grew slightly louder. The blond raised an eyebrow, silently requesting to know what was so amusing.

"Ah, chill, Waves," Ace responded lightly. With a relaxed smirk adorning his lips, Sabo's brother looked him straight in the eye and said, "Just thinkin' that if you weren't my brother, I'd probably be afraid of ya."

The words elicited a smirk of his own to bloom. A special, dragon-forged mind-bond wasn't necessary to understand the feelings and meaning hiding in Ace's statement. All the link did was re-affirm what the two already instinctively knew to be truth. The one universal thing the three could always depend on.

Ace, Sabo and Luffy may feel fear over something relating to their brother. They may feel fear about their brother. And they may feel fear towards something their brother does. But never, _never ever_ , would they feel fear _of_ their brother.

"Well, now that the heavy subject has been addressed and my wonderful plan shared and agreed to…" Sabo's smirk turned positively mischievous and Ace's switched to a conspiratory grin. Closing the open journals and setting them aside, the blond pulled over a blank sheet of paper and began drawing a different set of plans. "I noticed there is almost never anyone in the galley when we go to do our late-night practice sessions. I have doubts that an individual would be hiding their _ki_ at such a time, and the few instances I sensed a person in there it was only for a brief period of time. Likely to filch a late snack or drink or something of the sort." His brother nodded along, already aware of Sabo's attempts to perfect his _kisú_ while Ace and Luffy worked on their own abilities.

"Okay, why the sudden interest?"

"Luffy needs to practice flying, yes? I figure it would be easier if he had more room to do something other than trying to hover."

"Makes sense. What about the random drop-ins?"

Sabo grinned and handed over the sheet he'd been writing on. "I'll keep watch over the main entrance to the mess hall, you'll handle the kitchen, Luffy will practice unless someone comes along and we need his help to get them to leave. Think you can manage it?"

Ace nodded absently as he read over the sheet's contents. "Don't like I'll have to wear something other than a shirt, but the rest shouldn't be too difficult. Can Lu do his part?"

"If he can't, then I should be able to cover for him well enough," the blond replied nonchalantly.

 **" Atce. Sávbó."** Sabo shot a look at Ace upon hearing the deeper, melodious voice of their little brother.

Twisting around, Sabo saw the dragon lifting its head to let out a wide yawn that ended with a shake of the head and neck. _'Lu looks like a lizard. Will fly like bird. Yet he_ acts _like a_ cat _of all things._ ' He frowned as he realized Lu was still heavily shielding his emotions from the older two.

Ace seemed to notice this too, for he asked with a small amount of worry (alongside a hint of knowing), "What's wrong, _Lu_?"

Twin shining orbs glinted back from the semi-shadows. **" Atce. Sávbó. Nyot ll-lheave Luffhy, yesss?"**

Ace crawled over to sit next to Luffy's head, sharing a look of 'I knew it' with the blond brother. Lu laid his head on their big brother's lap and Ace started running a hand, with fire licking at his fingers' tips, along the scaly muzzle. Orange fire spread to wrap around the long neck and twist about the dragon's back and sides. Sabo could sense Ace projecting a barrage of affection and reassurance to their baby brother.

Adding his own waves of love and care to Ace's, the blond also included soothingly, "We'd never leave you, Lu. And we won't let anyone take you from us, or us from you. Okay?" The dragon gave a small nod as Sabo moved to sit opposite from Ace.

He smiled when Luffy raised his large head to gently rub against Sabo's chest. Their little brother had learned early on that even soft scales (compared to an adult dragon's) could seriously hurt Ace and Sabo's even softer Human skin. The blond started running his fingers through the silky ebony mane.

"Was it another bad dream?" A low rumble of unhappy agreement answered Ace. "Which one was it?"

 **"Vad H-yumanss take Accce nn Savbo 'cuzss know Luffhy,"** was the mumbled and slightly hissed reply. Ace and Sabo exchanged glances, knowing roughly what sort of dream that entailed.

"Lu," their brother directed his shadowed amber gaze up at Sabo, "you know that, even if someone took me and/or Ace, we could always count on you and whichever of us who wasn't taken to come rescue us. As long as you were careful and smart about it!"

"And didn't you say that these pirates didn't feel Bad? So there is little chance of them doing something like that to begin with," Ace declared. Sabo chuckled at his brother's words and the fire-user glared at him over Lu's head.

 _'Ace may say that and trust Lu's judgement, but he'll still fight them tooth and nail._ '

Not that Sabo didn't partially agree with their older sibling. As the blond had mentioned several days—perhaps a week?—ago to the Captain and some of his commanding officers. Just because the Whitebeard Pirates had passed Lu's test of whether they were Good or Bad didn't mean much to the brothers in the long-run. The crew still had to earn the trio's trust. And _that_ was not something easily given.

Wishing to get the young dragon's mind off the most recent bout of bad sleep, Sabo gave a playful tap to Lu's nose with his finger. An indignant, quiet squawk met the digit's action which the blond teasingly spoke over, "Hey, Lu. How do you feel about a game of Tag, some fishing, and then maybe a new round of midnight skulkery?"

Both blond and older raven let out a silent sigh of relief when Luffy promptly perked up at his older sibling's suggestion. Sabo leaned back to grab the previously forgotten sheet of paper from where Ace had dropped it. He held it up before the dragon so his little brother could inspect it as Sabo and Ace explained what they would be doing.

* * *

A knock sounded at his door. Marco sighed and removed his reader's glasses, placing them on his desk as he called out, "Come in yoi."

It was Izou who opened the door and peered into the room. "Say, do you have any story books?"

Well, that was an odd question. He'd expect something of the sort to come from Thatch; the guy was a walking example of a child stuck in an adult's body after all. Down to earth and practical _Izou_ wasn't the type to ask for story-telling texts. _'Unless they're romance novels, yoi._ '

"Not the kind you would find interest in," he replied. Izou scoffed and proceeded to waltz over to the First Commander's moderate bookshelf.

"It's not for _me_ , Birdy. I recently caught Blondie sifting through some of our random collection of written works. The few titles I noticed him taking an interest in were of the fairy-tale and adventuring type."

 _'Wait, they're for Sabo?'_ Marco absently watched his ship-brother flip through a book before setting it back on the shelf and grabbing another.

Ace and Luffy seemed more the type to read those types of books. The few times Marco had caught Sabo reading one on-deck or with Luffy next to him in their unofficial library, the teen had been reading something more practical. Once, he'd seen the blond reading a book on navigation. Another time, one about wild plants and various herbs. Then a different instance where he was perusing a book about the anatomy of various large animals. That time he'd been showing the different pictures to Luffy, who, although liking the image of the creature in question, seemed at a loss when Sabo began pointing out different features of said creature's body.

So it didn't make much sense that _Sabo_ would be looking for books on fairy-tales and adventures when he clearly enjoyed the more educational variety. Which led the pineapple-head commander to his next train of thought.

 _'The book isn't for Sabo… It's for Luffy, yoi!'_ His mind raced, thinking up a quick plan that might enable the commander to meet with the blond teen; hopefully ending with getting to meet with the flighty straw-hatted raven.

Marco swiftly rose from his desk chair and crossed over to where his books were stored. Selecting a volume that had a hard cover and colored a deep grey with dark purple print on its front he briefly skimmed through it. With a nod, he shut the book before turning to face a smirking geisha.

"I'll take it to the blond brat. Where'd you say he was, yoi?" He ignored the other's damn smirk that broadened at his words.

"He was still in the library, last I looked. Though, if you're hoping to catch Blondie I would hurry. He seemed about ready to give up the search and return to the side of the other two hoodlums running about topside."

The phoenix barely heard the Sixteenth's words as he briskly left his quarters for the ship's unofficial library. Really, the room was more of a large sitting room that had slowly amassed the majority of any books the crew collected over the years. He'd even donated to the growth from his own personal stash of texts.

Coming around the corner that led to the corridor housing the library, Marco spotted a familiar blue tail-coat and top hatted figure striding away down the hall.

"Sabo, wait yoi!" The commander slowed his brisk pace to a more relaxed one as the younger blond complied.

The ex-Spade turned halfway in a subtle move to put his back to a wall. At the same time a polite smile was etched onto his features as he calmly spoke, "Good afternoon, Mr. First. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

A muscle in his jaw twitched at the younger pirate's act. Drawing even with gentlemanly youth, Marco eyed the blond for a second.

Sabo looked a bit paler than usual, though he hadn't been in exactly prime condition since coming aboard in Marco's opinion. There was also the beginning of bruising under the darker blue eyes that he knew had faded away shortly after the Trio had been on the ship a few days. The commander couldn't tell for certain, due to the blue coat that was always worn, but he also felt that Sabo seemed skinnier than those first days too.

"I heard you're looking for a book to read, yoi."

Sabo raised an eyebrow at the somewhat random question. "I was, yes. Isn't that what one normally does when going to a 'library', sir?"

 _'Pops-yoi had it right. They're all "cheeky brats",_ Marco thought as he forced out a small, polite smile of his own. "Since you said you _were_ looking for one, I take it you've found something already?"

The teen held up a thin novel with a dark brown cover and silvery print along its spine. When Marco gestured if he could take a look at it Sabo handed the book over without complaint. Keeping his own volume hanging in a hand at his side, the commander used his other to swiftly skim through the smaller book.

Finished, he passed the novel back to the waiting Sabo. Holding up his own selection, Marco offhandedly commented, "If you want, you can borrow this one instead. The stories are easily better than the one you have." He held the book out and Sabo took it after a few moments.

Tucking the smaller novel under his arm, the teen quickly flipped through the old book. The neutral look plastered on his face didn't show any of his thoughts as Marco patiently waited. Snapping the grey book closed, Sabo studied it for an additional minute.

"If I may ask… What is the catch," he questioned lightly, looking up at the commander with that same infuriating mask of genial politeness.

"Why do you think there is a 'catch', yoi?"

With that same annoying air of politeness, the top hatted teen listed, "This print is rather old and fading in some places. The binding is worn and frayed at the edges, but still in very good condition. The pages show signs of wear with a few having folded corners and flip very easily without sticking to one another." Holding Marco's book up, he succinctly concluded with, "In essence, this volume of written works is from your own personal collection of books instead of the ones commonly available to the rest of the crew. This also has the appearance of being a favorite of yours judging by the number of times it has been read." With that, Sabo tried to hand the book back to Marco.

Ignoring the book, the Phoenix-zoan folded his arms as he acknowledged the teen's (correct) assumption. "Fine, yoi. I want to know if you'll help me with talking to Luffy." He almost frowned at the smirk that broke out on Sabo's face.

"I was wondering when you were going to come to me with that sort of request." Marco had the nagging suspicion he was falling into a trap of some sort. "I am honestly surprised you did not come sooner. Then again, Mr. Fourth is still trying to approach Ace. So I suppose it is not all that unusual you did not ask for help before now either." And that was mildly insulting to the First Commander; being put in the same grouping as the often immature chef.

"So will you help me?"

Sabo shrugged and leaned back against the wall. "Depends on what you wish to discuss with my little brother and what else is on the table." The teen tapped the grey colored book against his shoulder before offering it back to Marco again. "This, alone, isn't enough to guarantee my help."

Once again, the commander ignored the book. Looking the younger blond in the eye, he stated, "I want to apologize to Luffy for grabbing him and for making him think that I was trying to take Ace from him. I was going to do so that night we came to speak with you three, but got…sidetracked yoi."

Sabo stared back at him silently for a bit. "He doesn't hate you, if that is what you are concerned about," was the eventual quiet reply, smirk gone from the teen's face.

Though he felt a swell of relief at Sabo's words, Marco shook his head. "That's not the only reason yoi. I still wish to tell him I am sorry. I feel partially responsible for how he seems to be withdrawing from the others he was previously willing to speak and interact with."

The phoenix really did frown this time when that damn smirk re-formed on the shorter pirate's lips. Crossing his arms, still holding the First Commander's book, Sabo remarked, "While you are correct in that you are _partially_ responsible for Lu's recent change of behavior, it is not quite for the reason you think."

"Then why, yoi?"

"It's because he was reminded of something me and Ace have been telling him from Day 1. Despite him having judged the majority of this crew as being Good or 'Not Bad', that one thing has not altered."

Now Marco was confused. What about the crew had spooked the little runt? Sabo must have read his confusion and the answer he was given shocked the blond commander

"We three are your Captain's 'prisoners'. You first captured our older brother with the intent to keep on your ship and then took us when we came after him."

"You're not _prisoners_ yoi! Even Pops has stated that you three are _guests_ and are to be treated as such!" Marco was taken aback as the teen's eyes went dark and a bitter look crossed his face.

In a low voice, Sabo stated, "A rose will not change _what_ it is no matter the name it is called. Whether it be made of stone, lead, or even gold and jewels, a cage will always remain a cage. My brothers and I have had enough of them, gilded or otherwise, to recognize our situation for what it is." He'd been looking Marco in the eye initially, but the end of the rant found the younger's gaze fixed to the ground at his feet.

Marco's lighter blues widened in stunned disbelief. The Whitebeard Pirates had been warned by the Trio's previous crew that the brothers didn't react well to being fenced in and surrounded. Pops had taken that into consideration when he announced that the three newest arrivals be granted full access to the ship; allowed to do what they please (within reason). Though, in the end, he was forced to admit that Sabo had a point in calling the _Moby Dick_ nothing more than a gilded cage.

"I noticed that Luffy is willing to listen and obey you and Ace. Your old crew also reported that he would only ever obey you two, yoi. If you could convince the kid that I just want to talk so I can clear up this misunderstanding—"

"Please allow me to stop you right there, Mr. First Commander," Sabo cut him off with a sharp glare. "Lu only _listens_ to Ace and I due to the fact that we are brothers and he trusts our decisions. However, he is _not_ one to follow another's _orders_ no matter who that person may be." In a less harsh voice, Sabo continued with a playful smirk, "Ace and I are also quite fond of our baby brother's renewed clinginess and have no qualms about him keeping a distance from your crew." With that, Sabo stood up and gently tossed the grey-bound book back to its owner.

As Sabo walked away, Marco asked, "What can we do to get you to trust us, yoi?"

He only saw the teen give an absent shrug, never bothering to look back or stop as he did so, and continue walking.

* * *

"Well, I must admit I am a tad surprised to be hearing from ya, Mr. Fire-Chicken."

Grinning gleefully, Thatch corrected the ex-first mate, "Actually, the Trio call him 'Mango, the Fiery Blue Pineapple-Turkey'!" Marco's brow twitched and he smacked the Fourth Commander in the back of the head.

Thatch's laughter joined the ex-first mate's echoing from the den den mushi. "Hahaha! I see, that sounds very much like something Little Luffy would say. So, Mr. Head Chef, did Mr. Pineapple-Turkey give you those…creative recipes thought up by my old crew?"

The Fourth shot an exaggerated look of affront at his blond friend as he said, "You didn't say anything about getting new recipes! If your feathers were ruffled about being used in them you didn't have to worry. You'd give everyone indigestion so I would only use your less flame-y kin!"

It may have been childish, but Marco felt justified in kicking the chair's leg Thatch was leaning back on. He also didn't bother hiding the pleased smirk as the pompadoured man flailed and yelped as he crashed to the floor in an ungraceful (and very satisfying) manner.

Ignoring the complaints of his fallen brother, Marco was about to address the reason he called when Zack beat him to it. "I wager you are contacting me to ask about the Monster Trio, correct? I'm somewhat surprised it took this long. You pirates are more capable than I thought."

Hoisting himself up from off the ground and righting his seat, Thatch questioned, "You've been expecting us to call? Uh, why?"

The mushi scowled. After a few seconds Zack answered, "I'll get to that. First, I demand you tell me what my captains and the bouncy, hyperactive ball of energy have been up to. And what your crew has done to them."

"What makes you think we'll comply with those demands, yoi?" Marco would, of course. He just wanted to see how the cowboy man would respond.

"Those three were our leaders before they became your captain's _pet project_. I have the _right_ to know how they are faring. Especially when considering exactly how they came into your _possession_." Thatch and Marco exchanged concerned glances at the man's wording. "I also need to know as much as I can about their situation before agreeing to give the lot of you any advice on how to proceed with them."

"Pops isn't treating them as a possession and they aren't some sorta 'pet project' of his! We really want the kids to join us as our new younger brothers!"

"I'll be the judge of that," the snail glared at them.

"Fine yoi." With that, Marco and Thatch launched into a detailed account of the past few weeks. The speech talked of the ship's supposed 'ghosts' and food thieves. Strawhat's closeness with Stefan and the dog's odd loyalty and sensitivity to the Trio. The brothers' roughhousing with each other on the stern deck when people weren't looking and how they unconsciously and seamlessly switched turns at keeping watch. He didn't skimp on any details; including the crew's, captain's, and his fellow commanders' tries at befriending the boys. The First also spoke of their shortcomings, such as the scare some days back that escalated with Luffy's panic-attack. Marco touched on the various chats and talks held with the brothers during their stay as well. Thatch made sure to add his own observations as he saw fit throughout the whole disclosure of the past few weeks.

Zack rarely interrupted, save to ask for clarification or added detail at certain points. Largely, the man remained silent and even the den den's expression hardly changed from one of quiet contemplation. After Marco finished with his recount of the disquieting conversation with Sabo that afternoon the ex-first mate kept silent for some minutes longer.

The Fourth Commander fidgeted restlessly in his seat. Marco ignored the occasional uncertain glance from the chef and trained his blue eyes solely on the snail before them. At length, the communication snail gave an aggrieved sigh and shut its eyes.

"It's not good, but I honestly had been expecting to hear worse."

"So you'll help us," Thatch inquired hopefully as he leaned forward in his seat.

The snail opened its eyes before rolling them. "Please do not do that. It's absolutely creepy coming from this thing," Zack drawled.

"But you _will_ help us, right yoi?" The den den mushi paused then gave a brief nod.

"Aye, I will. You seem to have kept to your word, Mr. Chicken, so I'll be obliging and give you some pointers." A relieved smile skirted across the Phoenix-zoan's lips, echoed in the breathy exhale Thatch released at the ex-Spade's words.

"So what do you propose, yoi?"

"An island. Preferably one that is big and has lots of animals to hunt. A few days aught ta do the trick." Both commanders stared at the snail, dumbfound and confused at what the man had just said.

"I'm sorry. _What?_ "

"What does an island and hunting have to do with getting the boys to accept us, yoi?"

The snail looked at them as if they were idiots. "Sabo did a good job of explaining how the boys feel as a whole. You lot keeping them bound to the ship is nothing but an act of caging them. You trusted Ace not to burn the lot of ya when you walked through his fire, right?"

"Well, yeah… They seemed kinda shocked we did though," Thatch replied uncertainly.

"'Cause they were surprised someone would trust them like that and willingly take up a vulnerable position. Even me n' the guys had a very hard time of reaching that point, 'spite Little Luffy trying to explain that 'Ace's fire was Ace so it wouldn't hurt us'."

"What do you mean by that yoi?"

"Dunno exactly, Mr. Chicken. He tried to explain but lost us rather quick so that was all I got outta it."

Marco pursed his lips, brows furrowed lightly, as he thought about those words. Ace was a fire-logia so it made sense that he would learn to control his flames and treat them as an extension of himself. He figured it would be much like how Vista and Thatch treated their swords as extensions of themselves. A Logia's body was comprised of their element and the individual had near-complete command of said element.

 _'But Ace's flames don't quite fit with that analogy, yoi._ ' From what Marco and Thatch had seen, the older raven's fire appeared to act without his conscious thought. Whenever Luffy or Sabo came within arm's reach of the hothead there was always a small, fiery tendril that would branch out from Ace to wrap around a part of the younger brother. Then, when Marco had actually _touched_ the fire, there had been so much _feeling_ in it. As if they were _sheer emotion_ and not truly a destructive force of nature. He'd never heard of a Logia being capable of that with their Fruit's power.

"I know what you're thinkin' and all I can say is to wait before tryin' to get answers." Seeing his fellow commander in obvious deep thought over Zack's words reminded Thatch he still hadn't asked about Marco's odd actions some days ago. The chef didn't quite understand the big deal or the ex-Spade's confusion over Luffy's words.

 _'The firecracker is a Logia-type Fruit-user so of course he's made of fire. And everyone knows Logias are able to command their element however they want._ '

The den den made a noise like it was clearing its throat. "Back to what I was sayin' before getting sidetracked. Stopping at an island will help you as much as it will help the Trio. You can keep tellin' em' they ain't your prisoners but words don't go far with them."

"We have to show them, yoi." The den den nodded.

"But," the Fourth Commander started uncertainly, "what if they try to escape?"

"Never said it had to be an _inhabited_ island, though I don't doubt they could if they really tried."

"They won't though." Marco's statement sounded to be more of a question even to the pompadoured chef.

"Nah. You might not be able to find them for most of the time you stay at the island, but they won't run. Ace is too damn stubborn to give up on something he's decided to do. Honestly, the only thing more stubborn than _him_ is Little Luffy."

Thatch laughed. "Luffy? He's the most laid back of all three of them!"

The snail smirked as Zack replied, "You'll see. Kid is a force of nature when he wants something. If it weren't for how strong all three of those 'monsters' are, none of us would have joined a crew captained by kids a decade or more younger than us."

The commanders froze. Sparing disconcerted looks to each other, Marco questioned, "Decade? How old _are_ they, yoi?"

The den den mushi adopted a sheepish look. "They haven't mentioned their ages have they?" Thatch responded in the negative. "Damn paranoid bastards, the lot of 'em. Swear they think the world is out to get them." Marco raised an eyebrow at that; the odd comment reaffirming some of his growing suspicions about the Trio's past. Sighing, Zack imparted with a tired voice, "Captains Sabo and Ace are seventeen. Little Luffy is fourteen. Don't ask me when their birthdays are because they never said."

"They're _that_ young!?" Luffy's age was believable, considering most everyone thought the kid to only be twelve or so. Still, Thatch (plus several of his brothers and even their captain) had pegged Ace and Sabo to be around twenty with how they acted, looked, and fought.

"You said you were the first to join the three's crew, yoi. Do you know how long they were sailing before that?"

"Nope. With their skills it had ta've been a while, though. It's a little disturbin' to think otherwise."

Thatch puzzled over the man's words, thinking over what he knew of the brothers that might warrant such a statement. Marco sat forward, wondering the same and asked as much.

Zack didn't answer for several seconds. "I'm gettin' off-topic again." The snail gave the two commanders a considering stare. Resignedly, the ex-Spade muttered, "But, I did say that I would help give advice 'cause you lot were bein' so gung-ho 'bout recruitin' those three. An' me n' the boys are worried 'bout them. It's also gettin' late an' I'm tired." In a stronger voice that rang of determination he continued, "Listen up! We didn't call them the 'Monster Trio' for their combined strength alone, ya hear? Going by power, I'd wager Ace to be the heavy-weight of the three. Mostly 'cause of his Fruit powers, but the guy's also ridiculously strong physically. Doesn't help any that Captain Ace has a short temper either if ya aren't Little Luffy or Captain Sabo. He also has severe trust issues; outta the three, getting him ta like ya will be hardest.

"Little Luffy could probably match Captain Ace in terms of raw strength, I think though. As I said, only thing on these seas more stubborn or bull-headed than Ace is the smallest Monster. From how this den den looks you don't believe that."

"Sorry, but it's kinda hard to when the kid is either acting like a little monkey, giggling and running from a flame-y firecracker, or snuggling with the older two and a giant dog," the chef muttered bemusedly.

"What about Sabo, yoi?"

"Captain Sabo is…" The snail appeared to ponder something for a minute before Zack finally deadpanned in a wry tone, "A manipulative bastard who easily deserves the names 'Bloody Gentleman' or 'Bloody-Coat Lazúl'."

Marco's eyebrows shot up to brush his hairline and Thatch's mouth gaped open, jaw making an attempt to touch the floor.

The chef spluttered out, "The hell kinda description is _that_ of your ex-captain!?"

At the same time, Marco commented, "That seems rather harsh. Why 'manipulative'?"

The snail rolled its eyes. "I _said_ we called 'em 'monsters' for good reason," Zack mumbled. Louder, the ex-first mate elaborated, "Captain Sabo is not as physically strong as the other two but he is still plenty powerful. He's very adept at reading others and seems able to manipulate people like game-pieces or puppets without them ever knowing. Captain Sabo, unlike the other two, is more analytical of things and operates as the Monster Trio's tactician. Truthfully, I wouldna be surprised if he planned for you to talk to me after your conversation earlier today. Guy has an amazing poker-face and is a great actor so it's hard to see that Captain Sabo can be just as suspicious of others as Captain Ace." The snail shuddered. "Don't get Captain Sabo mad, though; his glare alone could prob'ly freeze the fires of hell and his rage is like a glacial blizzard. He's not as destructive as a pissed Captain Ace but _is_ just as ruthless when he wants to be, hence his other two monikers aside from being called 'Black-Fist'. The only way I know of to get Captain Sabo pissed, thankfully, is if you do something he feels is harmful to one of the other two monsters."

The phoenix leaned back in his chair. Staring up at the ceiling, he ignored the pale Thatch as he mulled over Zack's description. _'Pops is going to need to hear all this… Damn, and I thought Sabo to be the most_ stable _. That's starting to look more like Luffy, yoi. Or maybe Ace, actually._ '

Getting worried with how this information gathering session was turning out, Thatch cautiously asked, "Ummm… What about the youngest, Luffy?"

"Little Luffy… He's a bit difficult." After a few moments Zack offered, "It's not quite accurate, but Little Luffy seems to settle somewhere between his older brothers. Kid has an explosive temper but it's hard to ignite. He can also read people almost as well, if not better than, Sabo can too. I can't tell you if Little Luffy's smart or an idiot based on what he's done during my time sailing with him. However, he has the most _asinine_ _luck_ I've ever seen; no, I won't elaborate. You'll have to wait and see for yourselves."

"What about him would make you think the brat a monster, yoi?"

Zack snorted and the snail rolled its eyes. "Little Luffy is a monster because of how strong and destructive he is. Honestly, I feel that he is about worse than Captain Ace in that area. 'Sides, what else would you call a scrawny runt that can take out a large Marine ship on his own?"

"You've got to be shitting me," Thatch mumbled.

"Nope," the den den smirked. "The Trio even made a _game_ out of destroying rival crews and any Marines chasing us." Zack yawned and said, "Well, it's getting' late an' I'd like to catch some shut-eye."

"Before you go, mind giving us any other details we should consider, yoi?"

"Hmmm…" The snail nodded. "Yeah, get them to start eating in the galley as soon as you can. They may not be with me an' the guys, an' they may be monsters… But we still worry about them. Just from what ya've told me the Trio ain't eatin' enough. Mr. Chef?"

"Yeah?"

"You're gonna need ta make a lot o' food jus' to feed one of 'em. An' the youngest eats more than the older ones. Mr. Chicken?"

"Please stop calling me that, yoi."

"Get them to an island. Little Luffy hates being cooped up on a ship and needs more space to run loose."

"But," Thatch glanced questioningly at the blond, "the _Moby Dick_ is a _huge_ ship. How does he not have enough room?"

"The Trio like stretching their legs and sparring. Going to an island allows them to do both and Little Luffy starts getting real damn grumpy otherwise. Our ex-captains made sure to make landfall every three to four weeks because of this. With how much the Monster Trio ate we also used it as a chance to restock our supplies."

Thatch silently mouthed to himself, "They eat that much?"

Marco furrowed his eyebrows. "We have a training room they can use to spar, yoi. Why wouldn't they use that?"

"Ghuuh… Did you _say_ they could?"

"They have free run of the ship. Pops orders," the pompadoured commander absently answered.

"Doesn't matter. Remember? They view themselves as being prisoners under the fancy title of 'guest'. Unless you _tell_ them they can do something, they either won't or will be sneaking behind your backs."

"Luffy is a loud kid. I doubt he even knows the word 'sneak'," Thatch deadpanned. The den den mushi just gave him a look that clearly read 'whatever'.

"Last question, yoi." Marco waited until he had the ex-first mate's attention before continuing slowly with, "How can we make Ace, Sabo and Luffy more comfortable with being around us?"

"You mean less inclined to bite, hit or roast you for touching them or invading their personal space?"

"Sure, that," Thatch mumbled dryly with a wave of his hand.

"I'm sorry to say I don' really know how to help with that. Even after how long I spent sailing with them, I could only touch Little Luffy if he was 'bout to fall overboard. They kept to themselves mostly."

"But there's nothing you can think of, yoi?"

Zack didn't answer immediately. Thatch and Marco thought he might have nodded off (it _was_ getting rather late).

Eventually, the man replied, "Just do as I said before. Don't lie to them or try to manipulate them. Be sincere and open about how you feel when talking to them." After a pause, Zack added, "I don't know if it'll help you apologize or get closer to them, Mr. Chicken, but the Trio have a thing for animals. I swear, if Little Luffy doesn't try to make a meal of something he'll try to befriend it. Sabo claims he managed to get friendly with a damn _Sea_ _King_ at one point."

The three remained silent for a long minute while Zack tried to think of something else he could share that wasn't overstepping his bounds with his three ex-leaders. At length, and after an audible yawn, the ex-Spade said, "Just kinda remembered, ya know how Little Luffy and Captains Ace and Sabo are very... _clingy_ with each other? Yeah, be careful with that subject if you ever bring it up. We had a tally goin' on who got thrown in the sea the most for trying to broach that can o' worms. I think Little Luffy is innocent of any idea as to what the picture they present looks like but I ain't so sure about the older pair of monsters. Captain Sabo seems aware, at least, because I've seen the bastard do some very misleadin' shit just to get a reaction from the crew."

 _'I can see Sabo doing that yoi_ ,' Marco thought as he stared into empty space in the snail's direction.

Thatch rubbed his healing arm absently as he inquired, "What _is_ their relationship anyhow? They seem way closer than normal brothers..."

"Yeah, dunno what ta tell ya there, Mr. Chef. All three of the Monster Trio are fairly possessive of each other and, from what we've pieced together, have spent an extensive chunk o' time with just each other for company when they were younger. The idiots I sailed with thought differently, but I think it's nothing deeper than Captains Ace and Sabo having ridiculously huge brother-complexes when it comes to Little Luffy."

"And Strawhat, yoi?" The mushi shrugged.

"Nah, I think he just really likes the other two monsters and isn't afraid o' showin' such. Not sure where the sense of possessiveness came from but Little Luffy ain't hesitant about his claims over the older pair either." Marco nodded, recalling the runt's boisterous and rigid claim of Ace being his and Sabo's during Pops first official meeting with the Trio.

Letting out another yawn, Zack ended the conversation with, "Now, it's late and I would like to get some sleep. Goodbye, Mr. Chef and Mr. 'Mango who is a fiery blue pineapple-turkey'!"

The den den mushi went "Clank!" and promptly fell asleep.

"Pops is going to have a fine time sorting out this new info, yoi," Marco grumbled as he rested his face in a palm. Thatch glanced hesitantly at the older man. "What?"

"You, ah… You don't suppose that guy was being serious, do you?" Seeing the First's lips quirk down into a semi-frown, the chef licked his lips and elaborated, "About Sabo, I mean."

"He can plan and has a head for tactics. The younger two's assault on our ship proved that, yoi. Can't say I'd label him the murderous type his other nicknames imply, however," was the drawled response.

The room's door opening interrupted whatever Thatch was about to say. Turning to look behind them, the commanders were met with a surprised face.

"Huh? Commander Marco? What're you doing _here_?" Said man recognized the person to be one from his own division.

"I was making a call, yoi."

The division member adopted a look of confused shock. "B-but… I just saw you outside the kitchen, sir."

"Huh?" Now Thatch was confused. "The featherhead's been with me for the past few hours."

Tilting his head, mouth tugged into a slight frown, Marco inquired, "What was I doing outside the kitchen yoi?"

"Uhhh…" Hesitant eyes flicked between the crew's commanding officers uncertainly. "You said you were keeping watch for 'thieving ghosts'... Or something like that?" Marco and Thatch stared at the man like he was walking about without a head on his shoulders.

* * *

They waited for night to fall and then waited some more for the galley and kitchen areas to clear of pirates. The very last Whitebeard to vacate the room had been Thatch; the trio of brothers watching as the man finished loading some platters of food into the fridges. After doing a check of the cooking stations and making certain things were cleaned up, put away and turned off, the man left while grumpily muttering something.

Luffy giggled silently when the commander passed beneath their hiding place. He shared with his older brothers that the pirate had been cursing a "stupid, giant chicken". Lu wanted to go find said accursed bird; it'd been too long since he had a good hunt for something that could run away under its own power. Chasing after a giant filet of fish carried by one of his brothers during a game of tag could only do so much for him (even if it _was_ raw sometimes).

Once Sabo confirmed the chef wasn't returning after a good fifteen or so minutes and no others were sensed within the corridors bordering the two rooms, the three descended from the vent. It was a different one from the other they had been using. Up higher and situated in a dark corner of the room, which is why they hadn't noticed it at first—Sabo and Ace had Luffy's nose to thank or they would've never noticed its existence. A thorough search of the room revealed the only other vents to be the ones connected to the stove hoods above the cooking ranges. A quick inspection showed that only Ace (on account of being able to turn into flames) would be able to use them. Sabo and Luffy couldn't fit in them and would be at risk of being covered in flammable grease that coated the vents' walls.

Making sure that they had everything required should someone stumble upon them before they were ready to leave, Ace, Sabo and Lu moved to serving area that divided the two spaces. Sabo seated himself on one of the counters there while Ace and Luffy crossed to the opposite end of the room. Luffy divested himself of his vest, tossing it aside as he eagerly unfolded his wings and formed his tail. Ace chuckled as he caught the discarded garment and set it on a nearby table.

"Sooo… Why are we _here_ and not in the other place?" Lu started stretching out the kinks in his muscles and wings in preparation for whatever his siblings had in mind.

Ace and Sabo exchanged conspiratory grins. Turning their gazes on the smaller teen, they brightly said /Flying practice./ Luffy paused and stared at them blankly for a solid minute.

/( _Happy Excited_ ) Really!? Cool! Awesome!/ the dragon cried excitedly. The older pair chuckled as he leapt about, tail swishing behind him and wings fluttering with his zeal. "Wait," Lu stopped jumping about and shot puzzled looks at Ace and Sabo. /( _Confused Uncertain_ ) How do I fly?/

Ace face-palmed and Sabo let out an exasperated sigh.

/Just try doing what feels right?/ Ace suggested.

/Birds either drop from somewhere high or go for a running start./ Sabo offered. /Just don't go beyond your current form./

Luffy scowled at his brother's last comment and replied huffily, "I know _that_. Not stupid." An excited grin and anxious flutter of his wings preceded his next statement of, "Now watch me fly!"

Lu scrambled over to a table, climbing onto it, then looked about the room. He couldn't use the huge chair and table on the other side of the wide main-aisle that bisected the room from galley-entrance to where the food was normally served. Too close to the group of tables that carried the Commanders' scents; the Zoan and Shark Guy would be able to pick his own out easily since only they used those seats.

 _'So dropping into a glide-turned-flight is no good…_ '

Which left the rows of tables as his only means of increased elevation. And look! They were already laid out to be used as an improvised runway. But… How was he supposed to _achieve_ lift? He was only able to hover due to flapping his wings really fast—and that wasn't very comfortable over an extended period, let alone while running and jumping about.

Ace and Sabo watched as Luffy gave a small shrug and spread his wings. He began with slow flaps, steadily increasing to a more rapid beat, and started running down the length of the table. Approaching the gap between this and the next large table, Luffy increased the tempo of his wingbeats and jumped.

The older brothers burst into muffled, quiet laughter—they _were_ trying to be sneaky after all—when the smaller raven gave a startled squawk/yelp as he landed in an ungainly pile, rolling halfway down the table. Ignoring his brothers physically (his only response being a mental 'Shut up' mixed with embarrassment and irritation), Luffy sat up and glared behind him at the 'offending' black appendages sprouting from his back.

He's done numerous jump-glides before. Starting out either on a raised surface and dropping into a glide or just jumping up from the ground then spreading his wings to glide somewhere (close by). He even uses his wings to maintain balance when up high (and no one is around, barring Sabo and Ace). But, apparently, running and then leaping with them spread and flapping throws his balance way off and causes him to eat dirt—or wood in this case.

Luffy knows what went wrong. Maybe. Perhaps. The left caught air and stopped him while the right had pushed down and tried to make him go forward. He wasn't used to actually _flapping_ while gliding (ignoring the fact he hadn't even managed to get _that_ far), usually only making small twitches or leaning his body to direct his flight. The sudden newness of the additional movements while trying to get airborne had thrown Lu a bit, ending with his face being planted in the tabletop.

 _'But now I know what to expect._ ' With a nod, figuring the problem solved, the dragon stood up to ready himself for another try. A flick of his tail was the only indicator that Luffy was still ignoring the quiet echoes (mental and physical) of Sabo and Ace's mirth.

The older pair's laughter renewed when the second attempt went much like the first. The only difference being that _both_ wings caught air and stopped Luffy mid-jump. Their brother flailed as he was jerked backwards, hit the edge of the next table, flailed some more, then fell in the walking path between tables with a yelped curse.

Seeing as it's part of his job as an older brother to embarrass his younger siblings over these sorts of things, Ace _really_ wished he had a recording snail to catch all this. However, those were even more expensive than the den dens which took pictures and only slightly less expensive than those new mechanical (non-snail) cameras. Their old crew only had a few of the latter because Lu has sticky fingers and somewhat accidentally stole them to ask Sabo and Ace what they were.

The eighth try ended with Sabo muffling his chuckles behind one hand, the other gripping his side; Ace was on the floor (having fallen off the table he'd been perched on) rolling around with both hands clamped over his mouth and laughing like a loon. Luffy growled at his brothers from his upside down position—butt and feet in the air, tail between his legs and lying across his face, wings smooshed between back, floor and wood—sprawled against the wall that had interrupted his forward momentum. It was times like these that had the three thankful for Lu being made of rubber. Otherwise, the younger's lapse in awareness would've ended with a broken wing.

Luffy gave the wall a dark look, huffing when the construct didn't burst into flame or care about the offense against the dragon, and disentangled himself from the heap he'd landed in. Primly ignoring the hushed snickers and guffaws of Ace and Sabo, Lu jumped back up onto another table to try again. He didn't bother hiding his irritation at their laughter just as they didn't hide their amusement from him. Anybody else would've been growled at and/or bitten for laughing at Luffy's repeated failures (and it might not even be the dragon doling out said punishment).

But they were brothers. They laughed at each other's failed tries at something but never got overly mad at one another for it. Sabo and Ace's amusement may irk Luffy, who hadn't been in a great mood lately anyway and the current frustration he felt wasn't helping, however he couldn't begrudge their mirth at his expense. Ace and Sabo were laughing at him, yes, but not in a demeaning or mocking manner so he wasn't angry about it. It was common for the three to do so in a case like this therefore neither of the brothers took real offense at the action. And, if he _weren't_ feeling so frustrated and irritated (both not entirely caused by his attempts at flying), Luffy would be laughing with his older brothers too.

While Lu continued, unsuccessfully, trying to fly, Ace shot a mildly confused look at Sabo. Privately the fire-user stated /I fail to see how this is _calming_ Lu. He just seems to be getting more worked up. /

The blond tipped a shoulder in a half-shrug. /( _True Yesknow_ ) Figured that if he didn't work it out tonight he would spend time tomorrow analyzing what went wrong./ Ace's eyes widened and he went back to watching their baby brother.

/( _Understanding_ ) A distraction./ Sabo nodded, replying with a small bubble of confirmation.

Luffy had been getting steadily more fidgety as days passed and he couldn't escape to spend time in his true form. Their brother was still able to act relatively normal (for him, at least) in the presence of the Whitebeard crew, though only barely. The dragon was trying to shield them from it, however Ace and Sabo could dimly sense the itch scratching at their little brother's mind. Lu tried to ignore it, tried to bury it, but that incessant need was only growing stronger. In return, because he couldn't act on the instinct, Luffy has a near constant shroud of irritation (mixed intermittently with worry, fear, anger and frustration) edging his mind.

 _'Bad sleep and nightmares aren't helping any, either_ ,' Ace mused with a wince. Changing the topic, and including Luffy, the older raven questioned /When you think the flaming turkey will show up?/

The still flight-challenged dragon shifted a portion of his focus onto the blond even as he continued his flapping hops. Thankfully, he was no longer ending up sprawled across a wooden surface every time. Just every other one or so.

Sabo scanned his designated area again for approaching Whitebeards. Finding none, he answered mildly /I just spoke with Pineapple-Head this afternoon, so we can't expect anything until tomorrow at the earliest./ And, because he knows what Ace isn't asking and Lu (plus he and Ace) is slightly worried over, Sabo adds /If the turkey doesn't come to me by next evening I'll drop a few more hints./

Ace huffs at the response. It's not that he doesn't have any faith in his brother's plan— _'Scheme more like._ '—or Sabo's ability to read people like those thick books he's fond of. He's the 'Big Brother' so he feels justified in being a worry-wart when it comes to his two younger siblings. Sabo is the 'Middle Brother' with a penchant for scheming and being something of a perfectionist; sometimes needing Ace to drag him away when he gets to hung up on ironing out wrinkles in said schemes. Luffy is the 'Baby Brother'—anyone other than Ace or Sabo who calls him that is liable to get a nasty bite, though—who's the center of Ace and Sabo's world… With the aggravating knack of driving them up the wall (or over a cliff in a few cases) while simultaneously drawing them out of any darkness they find themselves in.

A small smile graces Sabo's face when he catches the faint wisps of Ace's thoughts. He doesn't know their exact content but he doesn't need to. The tiny whispers across their bond and the way the older teen is looking at Luffy are clue enough.

Lu also grins at the feelings emanating from his older siblings. Frustration quickly turns his mouth into a flat line when the next leap sends him tumbling face-first into a tabletop. Sabo and Ace snicker as Luffy's sent rolling off the table to bounce on the floor. A plaintive growl crossed with an aggrieved whine escapes the youngest.

The sound has Ace directing one of his Wisps to the dragon's relocated position as he walks over to help Luffy untangle himself. He shares the sight with Sabo, getting the other teen laughing. A low rumble of annoyance echoes the small swell of gratitude Lu offers his brother when Ace bends down to unwind his tail from a leg and an arm from around the other. Once those are free, Luffy is able to maneuver the left arm from between him and the right wing under him. The opposing wing's freed from being pinned to his back by his right arm and left leg.

Ace checks to make sure everything's fine before ambling back to his previous spot. The grumbles from behind send the older raven-hair into another fit of chuckling.

Lu perches himself on the end of a table ( _not_ the one he fell off because it's a _meanie_ ) like a stone gargoyle; hunched down, hands gripping the edge between sandaled feet, torso held between arms whose elbows brush the inside of his thighs, weight resting on the balls of his feet, tail curled beside him and hanging off the edge. Shaking black wings out to remove the kinks caused by the latest blunder, Luffy absently folds them against his back as he thinks over what he could possibly be doing wrong.

The older pair leave the dragon be. Neither know how exactly to help and they don't want to give advice that may end up hindering any future attempts. The silence is only broken by quiet breathing and the soft rustling of leathery wings.

Luffy stares off into space, tail flicking in tempered agitation, trying to remember how it was that his mother flew. He'd been very tiny then. Young. Thinking of her _hurt_ (because it always brought back how things ended) so he tended to shy away from those memories. But the times he flew with her, he wasn't paying attention to the _how_ of flying. Luffy'd focused more on how being up high surrounded by wind, cloud and sky felt. Focused on the golden mane and ruby scales that radiated heat like living fire beneath his soft and tiny paws. Amethyst eyes alight with joy—

The dragon quickly jolts himself from the memory before it could go any further.

Waving off his siblings' concern, Lu returned his attention to the problem at hand. At least his musings reminded him of how _right_ things felt in his dragon-form compared to his Human one. Perhaps trying to fly would be easier as well?

Sabo and Ace looked on in silence as their little brother cocked his head side to side a few times, obviously mulling over a possible idea. A small flare and dip of upper wing joints (his version of a shrug while the extra appendages were out) was made before Luffy frog-hopped to next table.

Keeping to his hands and feet, Luffy unfurled his wings and settled his tail straight out behind him. Beating the air to get a feel for how this new starting point felt, he was pleased to find things seemed a bit more…natural. _'Not as good as other form, but better than before._ '

A few more testing pumps of his wings and then Luffy took off bounding down the length of the table. While the first four-limbed leap didn't gain him much greater hang-time, Sabo noted that at least Lu was more in control of his form this time around. Ace was somewhat disappointed at the lack of entertainment—Luffy's 'oh shit/not again' face as he flailed through the air had been great to watch—but happy that the dragon-child looked to be onto something.

Sabo, keeping guard for any sign of a stranger's approach, lets Luffy continue with this for another hour-ish. Their brother has fewer incidents of flailing landings using his new stance and is looking far more coordinated in his efforts than his initial tries. Emulating his dragon-form appears to have been a great idea, at first, but now Lu is getting tired and it's showing. After working out how to move while still in a mostly Human body, Ace was glad to see Lu's much more successful attempts getting progressively better. He still wasn't _flying_ , just hopping and running on all-fours, however he _was_ managing to achieve _lift_ now.

Luffy's success started dwindling when, in his tired state, he'd unconsciously tried to default into movements that were more befitting of his actual dragon-shape. In a Human one they were just awkward and only served to add confusion between mind and body. Ace seconded the blond's call for Lu to stop after the younger raven "flew" into a wall. Twice. In the same five minutes. Luffy gave a few a token protests but was silenced with the offer of food.

With a yip of excitement, Lu raced over into the kitchens to wait for Ace and Sabo by a meat-locker. The older two swore they could see a dust trail marking his path from the rapid pace. Ace grabbed the forgotten vest and Sabo snagged the supplies set aside in case they needed to ward off an unwanted visitor, quickly following after the dragon. Sabo was grateful they hadn't required the use of his (roughshod) plan while Ace was silently disappointed over the lacking encounter.

They kept one Wisp active as they sat and ate. Luffy had (impatiently) waited for Sabo to walk over and slip inside the meat-locker to select some choice cuts for the trio—Lu not being allowed for the typical reason that he would gnaw on the biggest piece(s) until one of the other two dragged him out. Once they had settled Luffy to eating some red meat that Ace defrosted and seared steak by steak, Sabo raided the fridges and pantries for quick, high in calorie foods.

It was only a little while later that the three sensed someone approaching the kitchen from the down the hall.

* * *

Jerome moaned at his misfortune lately. He shouldn't have taken that damn bet with one of his division brothers. Now, he had the late night-shift in the Communications Room for the next _week_.

The pirate flinched when he thought there'd been a noise behind him. Seeing nothing there—they should have the stupid lamps closer together so there aren't any shadows between, dammit!—he resumed marching towards the kitchens. No way was he going to sit and stare at a wall for hours on end, waiting around in case a call for help came through, without something to eat. And no 'ghosts' were going to keep him from getting to the fridge he _knew_ housed Thatch's latest pastry creation.

 _'It's not like I'll eat them_ all _. Doubt anyone aside from maybe Teach could anyways._ '

That brought another thought briefly to mind. Usually Teach was the one to take night-shifts for watch or communications (mostly the latter, even though he was of the Second Division). Then again, maybe the guy was just a little extra tired from helping out in the Workshops? With the fire-brat making so many attempts on Pops' life (failing spectacularly), the shipwrights have had their work cut out for them lately.

Jerome flinched again at the sound of a creak. He let go a shaky puff of breath when he realized it was just the ship and not some undead being. Not that he _believed_ ghosts to be real or that they were truly haunting his home. That was just stupid!

The First Division member sped up his pace regardless.

He took a last look around him before quietly opening the door to the kitchens and slipped inside, leaving it open a crack so he could using the thin beam of light from the corridor. Jerome quickly tiptoed in the direction of the fridge housing his target. A shadow moved out of the corner of his eye just before hearing a very well-known voice call out to him.

"So you're the one raiding food at night, yoi."

No, Jerome did not jump and shriek like a little girl! That is not at _all_ what happened, no matter what the hell others were told!

Gazing towards where blue flames flickered gently over purple-sleeved arms, the Whitebeard Pirate tried to calm his racing heart. "M-Marco! What are you doing sitting in the dark?"

Indeed, the only thing he could clearly see were the small flickers of fire that illuminated one of the First Commander's favorite jackets. Everything else was lost in shadow or blocked by the small table he was seated behind. If the voice and fire didn't give the man's identity away, then the dark and unmistakable shape of the pineapple-like head and hair did.

'Marco' leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest; firelight dying down to small, brief flares of wispy licks. The Commander boredly replied, "Catching a thief."

Jerome blinked. "Huh? Thief? Why am I a thief?"

The iconic head canted to the side as he answered, "What else would I call someone sneaking about raiding food in the middle of the night, yoi? Did you know that you have Thatch thinking it's the work of 'ghosts' stealing food overnight lately?"

Gaping at his commanding officer, the pirate belatedly realized what he was being accused of. "Wait! That's not me, this is the first time I've snuck in here! And I wasn't going to _steal_ anything. I was… Going to get a drink of water!"

"Water, yoi?" Oh, now Jerome could just _feel_ the critical look that was silently asking 'Do you think I'm that stupid?' Shit. If he didn't fess up, it was likely Marco would stick him on dish detail for the next couple of weeks.

"Okay, _fine_ ," the pirate muttered petulantly, "I was going for one of Thatch's new pastries he was bragging about making over dinner."

The dark shape of Marco's head righted itself. "That's it? Nothing else that has Thatch convinced things are being stolen by supposed ghosts, yoi?"

"No, sir! That's not me or anyone else's doing that I know of!"

"Alright then. Besides that, is there something else you should be doing yoi?" Jerome flushed at the reminder.

"Ah, r-right. Sir! Sorry, I'll… Umm. I-I'll just be going now. Good luck with catching that ghost—er, thief? Sir!" Sketching a quick bow, the division member beat a hasty retreat before he got saddled with some unwanted chore duty. Marco was a bit of a stickler for rules (with his division especially) and being late to one's assigned shift was one of those.

As he made his way to the Communications Room, Jerome absently thought over the encounter. _'The Commander said Thatch thinks ghosts are responsible for stealing food…_ ' The guy paused when the notion sank in.

Apparently, the Fourth was adamant enough about the idea of ghosts being around and responsible for things going missing in his territory to get Marco playing guard duty for the night. Mr. Ghosts-Aren't-Haunting-The-Ship-Yoi, who always called the chef an idiot for such a ridiculous idea. Who _not once in that entire conversation_ said the Fourth Commander was an idiot when he mentioned the word 'ghost'. Who also didn't correct Jerome's hesitant claim that Marco was trying to catch a 'thief ghost'.

Did that mean… Did _Marco_ now think the ghosts were really _real_ and _really_ haunting the _Moby Dick_?

Another creak of wooden floorboards had the jumpy pirate all but sprinting to his destination.

* * *

"That actually worked?"

Ace stared at Sabo's flabbergasted expression as he put the pineapple down on the table in front of him. The purple jacket borrowed from the First Commander's room was also shed and tossed next to the fruit. Luffy was busy rolling around on the floor laughing his little rubber head off, hands firmly clamped onto his mouth to muffle the noise (only marginally succeeding). New Wisps were called into being and softly lit the room.

Narrowing his eyes at the blond, the oldest teen questioned, "What do you mean 'that actually worked'? It was your idea! Why _wouldn't_ it work?"

Sabo rolled his eyes. "I didn't think any of them were dumb enough to _really_ _fall for it!_ Even if Lu sounded _just like the guy_ , your flames weren't exactly 'feathery' or the same color as Mr. First's. We also used a _damned pineapple_ in place of a head."

Ace's eyes wandered over to said fruit. _'When Waves puts it like that…_ ' Yeah. That was fairly lame for one claiming to be part of the mighty Whitebeard Pirates.

"Shishishi! Did you _see_ that dude's face!? And the way he screamed!" Both older boys grinned at the reminder.

Sabo smirked and glanced at Ace, saying, "I think you made that same noise the night you woke up to a _moth_ sitting on you."

"Fuck off! That _thing_ was damned _huge_ and it was trying to _eat me!_ " The blond gave a nonchalant shrug in reply. He didn't drop the smirk though and Ace glowered at him for it. "It was, bastard."

"Ace. It was a _moth_. They don't _eat people_." Almost like it was an afterthought, Sabo cheekily added, "I'm fairly certain it just wanted to _cuddle_ with you. You _are_ very cuddly, you know."

The eldest brother rose from his seat, cracking his knuckles as orange fire licked across his shoulders. In a dark tone promising pain Ace growled, "I'll show _you_ 'cuddly', you damn pri—"

/( _HappyHappy Excited Yummy!Good_ ) Look what I found! Those pastries that Human talked about!/

Both teens blinked at each other before turning to where they sensed Luffy to be. The dragon was seated on the ground in front of one of the fridges and happily plowing through a platter of fruity treats. With a cry of dismay, Sabo and Ace scurried over to join the youngest before he could devour all of the sweet delights.

* * *

 **A/N: So yeah. Chapter is late, apologies times a _thousand_ for that. Not completely my fault. One, Apple sucks at making things simple and easy to transfer between platforms/OS programs. Two, I was technically kidnapped almost immediately after exiting the airport terminal.**

 **Word of advice: don't let your friends 'kidnap' people who've had martial arts training and are _known_ to react violently when surprised. It _does not_ end well. My family wanted to see me after my extended business trip so they decided to get my younger sister's boyfriend and some of his friends to pick me up from the airport. They were also given the instructions to do so 'creatively'. Took kickboxing lessons for three straight years and was already in a very bad mood from the plane ride (4 hours listening to the kid behind me throw a tantrum while constantly kicking my seat while some other set of parents thought it would be a _fantastic_ idea to bring a baby onboard and listening to _it_ cry the entire damn time will do that). Needless to say, my coworkers who had been on the business trip with me were somewhat surprised/horrified/impressed by the fight that ensued between me (5'2" and barely 110lbs) and four guys (between 5'10" and 6'3", the smallest weighing probably 150lbs). The 'fight', which was a lot more even than it should've been, only stopped when my sister's boyfriend pulled off his mask and said it was joke that my family orchestrated. I am currently plotting revenge and am also now known as "The Lil' Devil" at work. (I have yet to mention to said coworkers that that is also how my friends refer to me since middle school.)**

 **On to the chapter… No new terms (I think, checked but didn't notice any) this time but there will be next chapter. Also, little late because I had to go through and make several edits that weren't caught when typing this up on my iPad. Even had to run through it several times to fix formatting that got erased during transfer, which was easily a nightmare and a half! We'll also see what Marco and Thatch thought of the Trio's little masquerade at the end next time! Yes, chapter title sucks. I know. Couldn't come up with anything else and am too lazy to change it so whatever.**

 **And whoo! Mention of Shanks at last! Don't worry though, we'll hear more talk of him later. Maybe next chapter, maybe one after. Marco will be twitchy about it when the talk occurs though so look forward to that!**

 **(*) Think of the Jabberwocky in Alice and Wonderland. It had three sets of limbs: one pair of legs, a pair of arms, and a pair of wings used like an additional pair of legs.**

 **Thanks for your patience and sorry if a few people died (like they claimed they would) due to the long wait!**


	12. Sabo's Scheme and Planned Compromise!

**A/N:** **Sorry for the late update everyone! Some issues at home, rescheduling of a "family" reunion (which I didn't particularly want to attend but was the only time I would get to see a few unofficial family members in the foreseeable future ["unofficial" because they aren't in any way/shape/form related by blood to our family but kinda adopted and are seen as brothers/sisters or sons/daughters]). Before that, I was busy with work and dealing with another time-consuming crisis.**

 **One of my family's cats got sick (not mine, thank you whatever deity(s) may exist!) and me, being the unofficial vet of the household, was tasked with diagnosing and taking care of her. Had an eye infection that caused swelling beneath and slightly behind the right eye, which caused her eyeball to be pushed a little out of the socket and keep her from completely closing it. We have some antibiotic eye drops on hand (along with several other medical supplies for our animals) so used that and a lubricant to keep the infection from worsening and help keep her eye from drying out (causing even more damage). Checked to see if there was anything else but couldn't find anything that may be making her sick (she wasn't eating and had to force water down her throat, gently, using a plastic syringe). Tried to keep swelling down using a hot compress but that inly helped a little. Poor baby couldn't (or wouldn't because she was too miserable) get up to go to the bathroom, so I had to gently pick her up and place her in the litterbox every couple hours. Soonest we could get her into the vet (one we trust and has been extremely good to us for the past several years) was Monday so spent all weekend as a 24hr nurse.**

 **Good news:** **kitty won't lose her eye and wasn't in an accident. Was great to hear because I was seriously worried about her losing it when I came to the conclusion about it possibly being an eye infection making her sick or head trauma. Both would've caused the swelling and also fit with her behavior. She had an operation done to clean out the worst of the infection and drain the nasty fluid that was causing her eye to swell and push the eyeball out of the socket. Now she is fully capable of blinking again. Have a regimen of vitamins and antibiotics to give her and will be taking her back in at the end of the week to remove stitches and this tube thing that is being used to drain any fluid buildup.**

 **Bad news:** **I am currently unable to effectively take care of her so had to task my mother and younger sister with the job after giving explicit instructions and examples of what they were to do. Love the cat to death because she is very sweet (if somewhat annoying because she follows me like a damn fluffy shadow** ** _all the time!_** **), but** ** _cannot stand_** **the sight of the stitches and drain-tube. I will become physically ill just looking at them and start shaking if holding her too long because of it. Can only talk/ask about her condition in very basic words that don't involve the mention of her post-op accessories; just the mention of stitches makes me feel a little queasy. (So I guess you can tell where the Trio's dislike of doctors originated…)**

 **Anyway, onto other news! Chapter: What's going on? Not telling! Just wanted to make a reminder that this story is an AU! Some things about the world and the Trio's past** **will be different** **than in canon!verse. So please, no flames or questions about "why so-n-so's family is like this when in the manga/anime they were this" and stuff. I have my reasons and this is my story. :-P**

 **Also, because it took me so damn long to update and I completely forgot to tell you guys** ** _why_** **and left you all hanging, this chapter was added onto and made longer than the original 17K~ words that it was.**

 **On another note, I'm making that glossary of terms and will be posting that with the next chapter. Don't know if I'll keep listing new terms at the bottom of the chapter or stick with simply updating the glossary every time something new crops up. Will probably keep doing both so that you don't have to search for the new terms anyhow, so don't worry about it. Just me musing 'aloud'.**

 **Anyvay… Unto ze chaptur!**

 **(Already did cookies and brownies so…. DISCLAIMER Lemon Bars! All rights to respective parties, yadda yadda you get the picture!)**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: Sabo's Scheme and Planned Compromise! Bonding Over Breakfast**

* * *

Namur yawned as he lumbered into the galley. It was earlier than he usually woke up by a couple hours. Unable to get back to sleep, he decided to go grab some breakfast and then start on some reports so they would be finished by the time Marco got around to asking for them.

So it was a little understandable that it took him sitting down with a mug of coffee and large plate of food at what was dubbed "the Commanders' Table" to realize something unusual was up. Hearing a snorted giggle, he looked over to see Haruta twisted to the side, shoulders shaking, and fighting not to laugh. The young Twelfth Commander didn't appear to be having much luck in that endeavor. In front of him, Vista was doing the same next to Rakuyo. Off to the right of them sat Jiru, who was looking positively delighted next to a faintly grinning Jozu. Seeing that their gazes kept flickering over to the opposite end of the table, Namur turned his head to the left to see what had caught their attention.

Marco, nursing a mug of what the Fishman knew to be undiluted black coffee, was glaring balefully across the wooden surface at Thatch. The look on the chef's face had him wondering just _what_ the man had done this early in the day. Judging by the disturbingly _gleeful_ expression Thatch wore, Namur knew it couldn't have been anything good.

Between the two commanders sat a napkin with writing on it and—

"What's with the pineapple?" If anything, Thatch's look of pleasure increased by several degrees just like Marco's scorching glare flipped onto him. It quickly returned, no less heated, to the pompadoured man's face. Hoping to get it quickly over with, Namur grunted, "What did Thatch do _this_ time?"

"Well, you see," the Fourth started, grin stretching even wider, "I didn't have _anything_ to do with ruffling this bird's feathers. It was the ghost!" The Fishman just stared blankly at his brother.

Keeping his eyes trained on the auburn-haired man, he questioned, "Marco, how hard did you hit him for…whatever he did?"

He caught a flash of amusement behind Marco's blues while Thatch faced the Eighth Commander with a dramatic pout. "That's mean, Namur! I _didn't_ do anything, swear! See?" With that, Thatch passed the scribbled-on napkin to him.

Marco huffed as Namur looked down at what had been written on the worn piece of cloth.

 _It is advised that those of the Whitebeard Pirate crew  
_ _be given training on observing their surroundings.  
_ _The fruity pastries were delicious!_

— _Ghosts haunting the ship_

"Okay…" Seeing his brother's lack of comprehension—really, Namur just didn't care all that much as it was too damn early for this—Thatch launched into a _detailed_ account of why the Fishman should be laughing his ass off. Namur paid more interest in his breakfast and coffee, though still gave his brother half an ear.

 _Apparently_ , at some point late last night, Marco and Thatch received news that the First Commander had been guarding the kitchens against possible thieves—making specific mention of the culprit(s) being of the ghostly nature. The man to inform them was someone from Marco's _own division_ and who swore up and down that it had been _Marco_ he'd spoken too. Only problem was that, at the time, both First and Fourth Commanders had been in the Communications Room. After hearing the First Division member's story, his brothers had immediately gone to the kitchens in hopes of catching the imposter. Upon arrival, all they had found were some dirty dishes in the sink, missing food—including, but not limited to, Thatch's latest pastry experiment (which the chef bemoaned the loss of) and Namur's own special smoked and dried fish—and a few items left on a table. The items in question were a napkin, a purple jacket and a pineapple. The Fishman glanced over in time to see his blond brother shoot a withering glare at the innocuous tropical fruit sitting idly on the tabletop just as Thatch mentioned it.

Before taking another sip of his wonderfully black coffee, Namur grunted, "And why is the stupid fruit important?" He absently noticed the renewed snickering of his family.

With a solid _thunk_ , the chef plonked the fruit right in front of the large Eighth Commander. He almost did a spit-take, thankfully only choking some on the hot liquid. Managing to force the coffee down and finally _breathe_ , Namur turned dark eyes onto the sight before him.

Drawn on the pineapple was a _face_. Two thick, straight lines with a colored-in half circle in the middle of each made what were very bored/lazy eyes. Beneath them was what appeared to a beak…which had a tongue sticking out and little droplet marks to indicate it was blowing a raspberry. Across the pineapple's 'forehead' was the word 'MANGO'. Namur knew _immediately_ what the ensemble implied.

 _'Certainly explains things…_ ' Clearing his throat, he wryly muttered, "Ballsy brats." Vista chuckled at his words.

Thatch took back the drawn-on fruit, keeping it close and smirking at Marco when the man looked like he wished to incinerate the thing.

Namur frowned as he finished the last of his breakfast. "You mentioned a purple jacket?"

"It was mine, yoi." The Fishman saw Marco make an almost imperceptible scowl as he continued, "From my closet. I don't know _when_ they grabbed considering I spent most of time doing reports yesterday."

The shark-Fishman narrowed his eyes in thought. Marco, being a Zoan, had an enhanced sense of smell. That the brothers (or at least one of them) had been able to get around that and leave no trace when acquiring the article of clothing was a little disquieting to Namur. It didn't help that his adopted family knew next to nothing about the Trio, as almost all their intel about them was way off.

 _'Or completely lacking_ ,' the commander grimly thought, recalling how the intelligence gathering divisions could find absolutely _nothing_ on the youngest brother.

Something about the little shrimp unsettled him. He had no clue as to _why_ , except that his instincts whispered for him to be careful around the tiny brat. Which was ridiculous because the brat was so damn small, thin, wimpy looking and-and _clueless_ that he didn't seem capable of fighting his way out of a damn sack! Yet…

Namur had seen the runt stand up to Pops and his Conqueror's Haki. Twice! The runt had spoken with Pops as if they weren't Emperor and some unknown upstart, but equals. The runt had attacked his brothers—in misguided self-defense, true, but Strawhat shredded Marco's arm and the blond admitted the one against Thatch possessed fatal intentions—like he was a savage little beast!

 _'And yet, somehow, nobody has ever heard of this kid. The Whitebeard Pirates have a huge information network at our disposal and all we have to go off of are bits of dam hearsay!'_

"What're ya thinkin' so hard about, Fishy?" Namur sent a mock-glare at the Seventh Commander. Rakuyo just grinned back.

"I was thinking," the Fishman started, black eyes focused on the empty plate in front of him but not seeing it, "about something I heard awhile back. When I was coming home from my mission."

"The one that was near Fishman Island?" Haruta piped up. Namur nodded, arms crossed in front of him.

He could feel Vista's intense gaze settle on him as the large swordsman partially asked, partially stated, "About the Trio Pops wants to adopt?" Again, the Fishman nodded.

Voice sounding contemplative, Namur slowly responded, "I was told that Madame Sharley made a dark prediction about a pirate that recently visited the island, but the person left before they could clearly identify them."

In the suddenly thick atmosphere, Jozu's deep voice rumbled, "When?"

"…About a couple weeks before Pops grabbed the hothead."

A few moments passed before a different brother broke in with a serious, "What did Madame Sharley say yoi?"

Namur furrowed his brow-ridges, trying to remember what he'd been told by his source. "I'm not entirely sure. I wasn't told the prediction word for word, just a paraphrased version that I mentioned to the Old Man after I got back." His eyes rose to wander over his fellow commanders. Keeping his voice down so only those at their table heard, the Fishman said, "Something about the pirate being an untamed, monstrous beast that left destruction and chaos in its wake and how she saw it standing over the flaming ruins of what looked to be Fishman Island."

Everyone wore flat, grim expressions hearing their brother's words. Madame Sharley, a shark-based mermaid, was highly regarded amongst Merfolk and Fishmen for her very accurate fortune-telling. For that reason, any prediction she made was heeded with great care. Such a dark fortune, therefore, had the commanders on edge over who the unknown individual could be.

"You think it's about one of the Troublesome Trio," Haruta hesitantly ventured.

"Doesn' it take 'bout a couple weeks to get from Fishman Island to where the fire-brat fought Jinbei?" Rakuyo quietly asked.

"Kid's got plenty of destructive power. Also has a short fuse," Jozu offered with a scowl.

"The straw hat kid…we don't know what his Fruit is and he has shown extremely violent behavior," the Twelfth also brought up, looking around at his older adoptive siblings.

Vista waved off the younger's statement. "Only when he feels threatened. For the most part, the Little One is rather perky or else is being wary and sticking close to the older two."

Thatch snorted. "Wouldn't rule out the blond one, either." Namur turned his face to the chef, silently questioning the man's opinion. He noticed the others, minus Marco who staying silent, do the same. "The bird and I spoke with their ex-first mate last night. Guy said that Sabo was the sort who would look and smile like an angel even as he ripped your still-beating heart out." They all just stared at him; Haruta going a little bug-eyed and pale at the creepy image.

"We also can't rule out Luffy, yoi. The Spades were very clear that they were more scared of him than Ace and Sabo." Namur watched as the First groaned and scrubbed his face with his hands. Rising from his seat and heading to the door, the man muttered tiredly, "Come one, Thatch. We still need to go speak with Pops about a few things and—You are not bringing that!"

Namur shook his head, a fond smile on his face as heard the pompadoured man whine, "Whaaat? And not show the Old Man this _wonderful_ gift our resident food-stealing-klepto-ghost left for us so nice- _Ow_!"

* * *

Izou'd woken up much earlier than normal—it took time to style his unruly hair, put on makeup, then dress carefully so his kimono wouldn't be wrinkled or get anything on it—and gone to the kitchens to fetch an equally early breakfast for himself. The commander also grabbed an assortment of boiled eggs (which he'd put in a small basket to keep them from being ruined), fruit and vegies (some sliced), bacon (wrapped to keep the grease from getting on everything), a couple loaves of bread and a knife to cut them, a jar each of raspberry and strawberry jam (both sealed), plus several hanks of ham (also wrapped). Normally, Izou would make one of his brothers (generally Thatch) carry such an ungainly load so that he wouldn't risk staining or ruining the fabric of his kimono. But that would defy the point of his efforts that morning so Izou managed the task on his own.

The Trio had been acting differently than usual and it was starting to worry him. Strawhat was a bundle of energy on any day, though the past couple days he'd noticed the boy could hardly sit still. Closer observation revealed the loud runt to have developed a relatively nervous fidget; either fiddling with his hat, playing with the hem of his shorts, or twisting his fingers. He was also tenser despite how well he hid it. Izou was sure Pops noticed the change. Maybe Marco, but he wouldn't hold out much hope on that seeing as Luffy never let Ace near the First and wouldn't allow Sabo either (the boy avoiding the Zoan as well).

Blondie and Freckles were also sticking closer to Strawhat. Neither left the youngest except for short bursts. Izou thought he was imagining things because the runt was always accompanied by at least one of the older two. Yesterday confirmed his suspicions correct when the commander realized Ace left the youngest's side only twice (to stage his assault on Pops) and Sabo three times (the longest separation being ten minutes). Otherwise, all three were together. The changes were most drastic in Strawhat, small as the tells were when you were actively _looking_ for them. This morning also confirmed that whatever was wrong with the runt was really starting to affect Blondie and Freckles. All three were obviously tired, hats hiding the beginnings of ugly bags under their eyes, and the older two seemed very conscious of Strawhat's behavior.

Ace and Sabo had relaxed some when Luffy responded positively to the offering of food. Izou noted the brief glances at the covered basket all three made as they sat so he opened it to show that there was only his clothes that needed mending. The stiff postures abated and the brothers showed no qualm in moving a couple feet closer. Spreading things out on a clean blanket he'd liberated from a storage room, Izou made small-talk while covertly monitoring the Trio. Therefore the Sixteenth noticed that, even when eating, Strawhat's body remained a little tense and the boy fidgeted at random. There was also a mild air of restlessness, as if the kid were possibly irritated at something but trying to hide it.

As he chatted, taking pleasure in the three opening up a little without an audience to watch them, Izou caught how none of them made a grab for the jelly and one always had an eye on the dull bread knife. Keeping his movements slow and intentions clear, body at ease and nonthreatening as possible, the Whitebeard Pirate made a show of opening the sealed jars of strawberry and raspberry jams. Setting the lids down to the side, Izou picked up the knife (not missing the slight stiffening of Ace and Sabo's muscles) and sliced the bread up, selected a slice, then spread both jams onto it before carefully eating it. Carefully, because this was a new kimono and he didn't want any sticky jam or other food on it. He smiled when Luffy grabbed two slices of bread and spread both jams on each; chuckling when the boy also added several slices of cantaloupe and pineapple to make an improvised fruit sandwich.

What surprised Izou was, instead of eating it, the runt held it up to the Hothead. Surprise became understanding when the fire-user grabbed the sandwich between both hands and _toasted_ it; giving the sandwich back to an eager Luffy who thanked the older right before eating the thing in three bites. Izou had to blink at that. Blondie obviously thought whatever expression on his face was humorous, for the kid _smirked at him_ and copied the smaller raven's actions. Ace also caught sight of Izou's expression but seemed to interpret it differently than the blond had. Instead of smirking, the Logia lightly blushed (and Izou thought the teen looked so cute when he did) and turned his face away from the commander while pulling his orange hat down. Likely to hide the deepening blush in the hat's shadow when Ace quietly asked if Izou wanted the same as his brothers.

At first, the Sixteenth thought he was hearing things. When the hothead—when _Ace_ —tilted his head a touch to glance up from under the rim of his hat, a hesitant grey eye looking at him in silent question… Izou let a gentle smile slide onto his face and warmly thanked the teen as the commander held a couple slices of bread out for Ace to take. As he lathered a good helping of strawberry jam on both pieces of toast, the geisha-like man listened to Blondie quietly tease Ace (cheeks were still dusted with pink beneath the freckles) who snarked back in equal measure. Strawhat continued munching away between the two, though Izou caught how the boy had shifted closer to Ace when the older made his offer. It was rather amusing to watch older pair throw words at each other even as a rope of flame grew from Ace's side and curled around the waists of both younger brothers; like a warm, albeit incorporeal, hug. The thought had Izou hiding another smile behind a bite of toast. He knew at least one brother spotted it, for Luffy had thrown a small, knowing grin at Izou before taking a large bite of an apple.

Although he was still fairly silent, Ace appeared more open after that. Izou silently congratulated himself for the idea of getting up early to hold this impromptu breakfast with the younger pirate trio. The commander was of the firm opinion that Ace would've never made such an offer had other been around to see. Apparently seeing Ace less guarded opened a new gate because Sabo lost some of that distance in his tone (the blond's speech remained very polite) and Luffy's eyes became less wary whenever they landed on him.

When everything was eaten—Izou didn't fail to notice that Ace and Sabo had discretely made sure Luffy at the majority—Ace disappeared for a short time and came back with a large pillow. Strawhat made a hurried "thanks for the food" and scrambled over to grab the article of bedding. Blondie gave a more refined thanks, helped Izou fold the blanket and put the wrappings in the large sack, then left to join the other two near the stern's back rail. Ace perched several feet off to Sabo's left as both casted makeshift fishing poles (using what looked like large hunks of meat stolen from the freezers). Luffy curled up with the red and black body-pillow between the two.

Wanting to see if they would object to his continued presence, Izou softly hummed to himself and brought out the first kimono that needed a sleeve stitched up. He'd gotten a few curious glances from the Trio but, when they remained silent and gave no indication the division commander was overstaying his welcome, he continued with mending the sleeve.

At first, the youngest kept at least one eye on him, both either nearly closed or one shut and the other still partially open and fixed on the Sixteenth's figure. After a time, and judging by the position of the sun it must've been close to an hour, Strawhat wriggled and shifted to face the wall as he curled around the pillow. The change shocked Izou when he looked up and saw the smaller raven's back; no one was ever _this_ close to the Trio without at least one pair of eyes watching them. Ace and Sabo also looked taken aback by the shift. Backs stiff and shooting looks of question and warning at Strawhat and Izou, respectively. Another minute filled with silence, the barest of half-gestures or shoulder twitches, plus heavy glances made between the three—not that Izou could see Strawhat's face, he just assumed based on what he saw—passed. They seemed to reach a decision, for Ace and Sabo aimed a final warning glare at the commander before returning their attentions to fishing. Deciding not to question this new level of trust, Izou's concentration re-centered itself on the new kimono splayed across his legs.

The pistol-user continued with his mending for a time. The silence only broken by his low mutters and quiet humming.

The feminine commander only noticed the smallest brother actually fell asleep when the boy let out the faintest of whimpers. Izou only heard the sound because a timely breeze carried it to his ears. Chocolate-brown eyes flashed to alight on Strawhat's small form. The boy, while not twitching or moving in his sleep, was tense and squeezing the part of the pillow encircled by his thin arms. Thinking that the older pair hadn't heard or noticed their youngest sibling's distress, Izou opened his mouth to quietly bring it to their attention.

Just as he took a breath to call out, a soft whistling—which the commander quickly determined was coming from the top-hatted teen, seeing as Ace had glanced down at Luffy and the noise wasn't coming from him—floated about the deck. The quiet, gentle notes of a song, one that escaped Izou's recognition, eased the unhappy tension from Luffy without waking the child. Sabo kept the whistled song going for a few more minutes. At its conclusion, Izou moved his gaze from the sleeper to meet the two pairs of eyes he felt studying him.

Ace scowled and quickly turned back around (after sending a more concerned glance at his youngest brother). Sabo, however, opted to study the Sixteenth for a handful of moments. While not necessarily cold, the blond's sea-blues were definitely not warm as they searched Izou. If he had to describe them, Izou would say that they were a 'calculating cool'. In any case, the blond mustn't have been overly troubled by what he found in the commander's darker eyes since he calmly followed Ace's lead (minus the scowl). Izou examined them silently for several minutes before going back to fixing his current selection of colored garb.

Izou knew he had a tendency to be nosy and liked getting answers to whatever questions were rattling around in his brain. This sometimes also made him impatient and press for details, doing his level-best to weasel answers out of people. Thankfully, he was also able to tell when people were definitely _not_ open to talking; this being one of those times. Which was fine. Izou could be patient and didn't want to drive away the Trio with his nosiness. There was plenty of time for that _after_ they accepted his Father's offer to become part of the Whitebeard Family.

A grin pulled at the geisha-like man's lips at that last thought. Only a week or so ago, Izou couldn't have really cared if the three stayed or left. They'd been nothing more or less than three uncouth and destructive brats in his mind. Now, the commander really hoped the Trio _did_ join his adoptive family and become his new younger brothers.

* * *

Luffy stared at the backs of his big brothers, both of whom were fishing at the moment. He absently listened to their soft chatter and taking in the gentle hum echoing inside where their minds feathered against his.

The dragon was cuddling with his favorite pillow—a 'body pillow' Sabo had called—that was a bright red with what looked like scales outlined in thin black lines all over the case. The pillow was almost as long as he was and Luffy had his arms wrapped around it towards one end, chin nestled comfortably on the bulge that was created. The rest of him was laid out on top, soaking up the warming sunlight and occasionally watching the fluffy white clouds drift overhead.

Lu let a small huff escape him as he repositioned his arms to rest on top of the pillow and along his sides, trying to maximize the area being warmed by the gentle sunlight. Sympathy combined with a touch of humorous glow wafted across the bonds with Sabo and Ace. It relaxed him some but Luffy couldn't settle completely.

Trying to fly last night tired him out even as it helped relieve that bothersome itch that'd been nagging at him. Tired as he was, however, that didn't prevent the first or the second nightmare that interrupted his (and consequently his big brothers') sleep last night. Lu only told Ace and Sabo the gist of them each time he'd awoken, preferring not to think too deeply about the dreams. They went essentially went the same. He, Sabo and Ace would be playing (Luffy either in a hybrid or fully dragon form) somewhere under the sun and having a blast; laughing, joking, chasing each other around, the works. Then Lu hears something behind him and turns to look, sees nothing, twists back to look at his brothers…and finds they aren't there. Scenery fades into a cold mist and in the half-light he stumbles around calling out for his brothers but only hears echoes of his own voice. Just before he wakes up, Luffy catches the shadowy bulk of something huge and runs over to see what it is. The last thing he sees as the nightmare comes to an abrupt end is a haunting, glazed amethyst eye. He doesn't make any mention of the shadowed shape or eye to his siblings. Luffy doesn't want to remember that part or the memories associated with it.

/( _Concern Okay?_ ) Something wrong, _Lú_? / The fledgling jerks a tad and looks up to see Ace eyeing him over his shoulder.

Lu smiles at his brother and waves off the other's worry. /( _Fine Okay TiredRestless_ )/ Switching his eyes to the poles in the two's hands he asks /Catch anything?/

Sabo chuckles over Ace's aggrieved and disappointed sigh. /Nothing yet, Luffy. Only some nibbles but no bites. Do not worry, you'll know if we catch something./

Luffy switches his gaze from Sabo to the pole in the older's grip. /Maybe I can—/

He doesn't know who responds first, but there is a rush of emphatic _'no'_ coupled with flashes of him going overboard from hooking something too big for him. Luffy pouts at the looks being directed at him though grumblingly backs off.

Despite that he's tired and hungry, Lu is also anxiously restless. He doesn't like sitting still normally (unless there is a point or reason for it) and that's compounded by the buzzing under his skin which is very close to being almost itchy. Attempting to ignore the sensation, Luffy idly roves his dark browns over the stern deck to see if there's anything that might help distract him.

They come to a stop on the figure leaning against the helm's back wall next to the broad wooden mast. Huh. He almost forgot about Lady-Man coming up to sit with them awhile back. The Human doesn't usually show up top-side until later in the morning, however he'd arrived at the top of the stairs leading to the stern deck around eight. Without being prompted, Lady-Man tucked his guns inside the wheelhouse before walking around to sit next to the mast as he wished them a good morning. Luffy had chirped a similar greeting along with Sabo and Ace (both sounding more wary and neutral than the dragon's).

They'd been up since dawn and—after Ace made his customary… Sabo _thinks_ it's Assassin Attempt #47, or maybe #48, against Whitebeard—had just finished running about in a game of Tag to work off nervous tension. Lady-Man's first sight of them was a wrestling, giggling dog-pile. Giggling, because Luffy was sharing images of the faces the Humans on Watch had made when they saw a random and supposedly disembodied head looking at them from the side of the crow's nest. With Ace being distracted, Luffy thought it the perfect opportunity to try and tickle the older teen. Ace retaliated and Sabo got dragged in when he called them both children. Thus, the wrestling dog-pile.

Lady-Man had brought food and a medium-sized basket with him, offering to share the food with them if they felt hungry. His brothers were a little wary (again, the man had never sought them out _that_ early before) at first. Luffy, though, sensed nothing bad so he'd promptly bounded over to take up the offer; he even felt proud to remember saying "thank you" in spite of how tired he was at the moment. Lady-Man chatted with them as they ate, asking about what they were doing up so early and why they'd been wrestling like puppies. Sabo asked why the Human was up early when he normally wasn't. The response was that the dress-wearer wanted to see how they were doing without the prying eyes of the man's many brothers observing them. Hearing that, and relaying the truth behind the statement, relaxed Ace and Sabo into an easy time of simple-talk with the man. Or, Ace making a comment here and there while Sabo spoke.

When the food was gone (though he could smell something sweet hidden in the man's green and pink fabric), Luffy snuggled against Sabo's side, the blond still chatting amiably with Lady-Man, while Ace darted off. His brother came back with Lu's favorite pillow which the dragon happily nabbed from the older raven. Sabo and Ace nodded at the colorfully robed Human and the three of them went to where the poles had been set down. His older siblings took up their typical fishing seats on the rail of the stern's half-wall lining the deck, Luffy lying down to cuddle with his pillow.

That had been a couple hours ago now. In between the dozing naps, Luffy had heard the female-like male either softly humming or quietly talking to himself. Currently, the basket Lady-Man had brought was open and Lu could see many bits of cloth inside. There was also a pile of folded fabric next to the man's other side. On the Human's lap was a bundle of deep pink with dark purple designs that he was poking with a needle.

Well… Luffy was bored and this _was_ an opportune distraction. _'And have been meaning to ask a question too._ ' Decided, Lu levered himself up, grabbed his pillow, and meandered over to see what the man was doing. _'Maybe I can see what that hidden sweet thing is… Hope it's food!'_

* * *

Izou was humming quietly to himself as he stitched a few tears and fixed some of the embroidered work on the pink kimono in his lap. It was getting close to noon and the commander was willfully ignoring the small stack of paperwork he knew was waiting for him in his room. His time would be _much better_ spent trying to bond with the Trio.

While Thatch tried to convince the brothers to join the Whitebeards in an obvious fashion—often, quite literally and to Izou and the other commanders' amusement, getting burned in the process—and Marco took a more passive-neutral stance, Izou preferred a relatively passive approach. Namely, getting close to the brothers and subtly hinting that they should join the Family without saying such out loud.

He cursed when he pricked himself. _'Dammit! I better not've gotten any blood on this… So damn hard to get blood stains out._ '

Seeing the Human was distracted, Luffy made his steps a little louder. He _could_ flare his _ki_ , but Sabo and Ace wanted to hide their abilities as much as possible right now. Surprising the Commander with his sudden presence might also invite a less than pleasant reaction born of habit. Even if it was an accident, Lu's big brothers would not take lightly to any action against him right now. He could already feel their tension and hesitation in letting him get so close without one of them by his side.

Izou heard the shuffling and looked up to see the boy, who had spent the last twenty odd minutes fidgeting in place, walking over to him. He marginally raised a trimmed eyebrow at the giant pillow being toted along but refrained from commenting. Luffy slowed a bit when he got closer, waiting to see if the man minded his company or not. The Sixteenth, who'd gone back to fixing a portion of the current kimono's embroidery, paused his needlework when the footsteps slowed. A second glance at Strawhat showed the young pirate seemed to be waiting for something.

 _'So he_ does _have manners_ ,' Izou thought with some amusement.

When he saw the pretty-robed Human smile, Luffy grinned back and quickly crossed the last couple yards to plop down in front of the man. The dragon sat closer than he had before, though still kept a solid distance of three-feet between them. It surprised Izou since the boy only ever got this close to Marco and Thatch— _'Recently Pops, too_ ,' he mused. However, aside from with Pops, Ace and/or Sabo were always right next to the kid at those times. Discretely eyeing the boy, the commander decided not to bring attention to this fact and acted as if nothing were different. Luffy let some of the stiffness flow from his muscles when the lady-like Commander ignored the dragon's proximity. His brothers' hesitance faded a touch but sensed no change in their wariness; Ace's actually grew slightly.

Izou continued his work in silence for another minute.

"What are you doing?" Lady-Man cursed just as Lu scented a trace of blood. Figuring (correctly) that the other was hurt because of him, Luffy quietly apologized, "Sorry."

Finger in his mouth, Izou lifted his other hand to make a slight wave. "It's fine. Just a little prick." After quickly checking, again, the fabric wasn't stained, the commander set to finishing the last few passes of the needle and thread. "In answer to your question, I am fixing the embroidery on this part of the hem." Luffy canted his head to the side, shifting the bulky pillow in his lap to see better.

"Embroiry? Wha's that? Is it like 'stitching' and 'sewing'? Ace and Sabo can do that! They stitch my clothes and hat to fix them all the time," Luffy bounced a little as he said the last part. Izou smiled at the pride he heard in the boy's voice when speaking about the older pair's sewing talent.

"It's pronounced 'em-broy-der-ee'," commander corrected patiently. He nodded when Luffy repeated the word correctly.

Folding the finished kimono and placing it in the 'done' pile, he glanced over at fishing pair. Sabo and Ace had their heads twisted just enough to watch the commander over their shoulder from the corner of their eyes; cool blue and heated grey carefully analyzing every move made by the Whitebeard Pirate. They were obviously uncomfortable and unhappy with Strawhat's proximity to him.

Selecting the next folded garment to be fixed—a cream that faded to burning orange kimono that Izou remembered ripping a shoulder seam on—he picked a similarly colored thread to use. Luffy watched, playing with a side of his pillow, and commenting on the robe's color scheme to his brothers.

/( _Don'tcare Bad Notsafe_ ) Luffy get your scaly butt back here!/ The dragon projected an image of rolled eyes at Ace. /( _Notfunny Listen!_ )/

/( _Wary Fine?_ ) Light seems to think it's alright, Ace. Let's just watch the guy for now. ( _Warning Listen!_ ) But Lu, the instant you feel something off you are to _get right back here_. Alright? / Both dark-haired brothers acquiesced to the middle one's compromise.

The mental conversation took only a few seconds, so Izou was understandably surprised to see both older brothers give him a sharp look (glare in the fire-teen's case) before turning around to face the sea once more. Ace also seemed to sulk in his seat. A puzzled frown almost rose at the sudden change but he was distracted by Luffy shifting in place.

Threading the light-colored string through the needle's eye, Izou began work on the seam. Lu was about ask his previous question again when Lady-Man distractedly answered, "I suppose embroidery is _like_ stitching in a way."

"But not the same," Luffy added.

Izou's gaze flickered to meet the boy's and nodded. _'Thatch and Marco were right. Strawhat is very perceptive of how people word things._ ' He'd wanted to test that out after hearing his brothers' opinions about the small pirate. Luffy had unknowingly given him the perfect opportunity.

Aloud, the Sixteenth confirmed the dragon's statement. "Right. Both could be considered a part of 'sewing', but 'stitching' something is more like what I am doing here," Izou lifted the torn seam he was fixing. Luffy, hesitantly, leaned closer to see. The commander kept his movements slow as he reached over to get the previous kimono. Though Strawhat had been willing to get closer, without the comforting presence of an older brother next to him Izou found the small pirate to be far more timid and skittish.

The dragon leaned back a little when the Commander brought the pink and purple robe onto his lap. Izou unfolded a sleeve to reveal the dark purple designs circling the garment's cuff. Pointing to the curling detail-work, he said, "This is embroidery. You use a thread different from the rest of the fabric to make special designs. It's a bit harder than normal 'stitching' because you aren't _fixing_ something but _adding_. You need a steady hand, patience and a sense of artistic creativity." Luffy nodded to show he followed what Lady-Man was saying.

"So…" He looked at the pretty, curly purple designs accenting the deep pink fabric. "It's like tattooing, but using thread and not special ink?"

After all, dragons didn't wear clothes. They could draw on themselves with special inks that wouldn't fade, fixing the designs where scales were either shed and regrown or damaged. Thus, the concept of tattoos wasn't very foreign to him. How Commander Lady-Man described 'embroidery' sounded very much the same except involving thread and cloth instead of skin/scale and ink.

Izou pondered the analogy. Deciding it was, for the most part and with how Luffy asked, true, the older pirate answered with a pleased smile, "Essentially, yes. I guess the two are alike in that way." Luffy grinned up at the man.

Watching as Izou refolded and moved the kimono back to its prior spot, Luffy called out, "Ne, Sabo?" A meager bubble of expectant curiosity tinged with knowing met him. "Can you do that?"

Izou looked up in time to catch Ace curl in a little, shoulders shaking slightly with what was likely to be suppressed laughter. The dragon was a little confused as to why he felt amusement from his eldest brother over the idea that _Sávbó_ might know how to 'embroider'. He knew how to sew and was very good at drawing (Lady-Man said you needed to be creative), so why _shouldn't_ Sabo be able to make thread-tattoos on clothes?

"No, Lu. I do not embroider. My skills extend to only fixing tears in clothing, hats, sails," the cool voice gained an edge as the blond finished with, "and _charcoal-brained idiots who have no room to talk_." Ace kept sniggering despite the rising ire Lu sensed in Sabo.

"Psh," the freckled teen waved off their brother's comment with a laugh. "I'm no worse than you. Unlike our dear lil' Lu, at least I can _use_ a needle." The dragon shrugged.

It was no news to him that he lacked any ability regarding a thread and needle. Needles were evil anyway. _'Too poke-y.'_ He'd gladly leave that sort of stuff to his older brothers.

Izou raised a trim eyebrow when Luffy offered no comeback at the insult. He thought the younger would be upset at the insult as Strawhat often displayed competitive tendencies when it came to the Trio mentioning each other's skill sets. _'The few times they_ do _talk about their abilities anyway_ ,' the Sixteenth thought petulantly. For as much as Strawhat and Blondie talked with the group of few commanders and their captain, the Trio hardly gave out much of any concrete information about themselves or their pasts. Most everything Izou and his adoptive siblings and Father knew about them came from hearsay and close observation. Blondie's counter to

"Luffy is Luffy." From how Sabo said it, Izou suspected the phrase to be a common explanation used by the Trio. " _You_ , dearest big brother who has only ash in his skull, only started making real attempts _after_ you got your Fruit powers." Luffy laughed brightly, clutching the red and black pillow tighter to him.

Feeling a small wave of confusion mixed with amusement and… The dragon quieted a little as he tried to parcel out what that last thing was. Automatically, he knew the emotions were coming from Lady-Man who was watching his big brothers tease each other back and forth. That final bit seemed to be a jumbled mix of several emotions. Dimly, he could recognize 'fond' to be one. Another Lu thought to be something akin to 'desire/want' had him subtly bristling.

To get his mind off the subject, Luffy quietly told the Commander, "Sabo got tired of fixing Ace's clothes when Ace kept burning them. He forced Ace to fix them himself. It was really funny and Ace kept cursing himself for eating the nasty-tasting Fruit!" Izou chuckled at the boy's cheeky smile.

Internally, the Sixteenth Commander was wondering when Ace ate the Flame-Flame Fruit. The Spade Pirates had been a relatively new crew and Ace was very adept at using his abilities. That meant he'd possessed the Fruit's power for a while before that point. If Ace were about nineteen or twenty years old, that would mean he got his powers around age seventeen. Maybe even sixteen. Luffy implied that Ace didn't know how to sew before that point because Sabo had been the one to do so. On a very regular basis from how Strawhat sounded. Sabo was also close in age to the oldest brother, making him no more than a year or two younger.

 _'I don't like where this is headed_ ,' was his grim thought. He was broken from the downward spiral when the freckled teen's voice grew louder.

"Besides," Ace turned and Izou saw the older teen give a mischievous smirk to the top-hatted blond. In a lofty voice, the fire-user said with a large degree of feigned pomp, "I think embroidery to be a skill one like yourself should have, Your Majesty." Ace snickered to himself.

Luffy glanced back and forth between his brothers. Joy and smug amusement emanated from his oldest brother. Sabo… He thought of the phrase 'calm before the storm' fit his middle brother's mood best.

Calmly reeling in his length of cable, deceptively benign voice carrying over the fire-user's sounds of mirth, Sabo began, "From one prince to another…" Ace apparently realized something had changed, for his laughter started to die when Sabo let the improvised fishing rod drop to the deck with a 'thunk'. One of the commander's dark brows rose when he saw Ace pale slightly under the look the blond was directing at him. Rising to his feet, cracking leather-gloved knuckles, the gentlemanly pirate finished in that same tone, "Prepare for an ass-kicking."

Right as the final word left his mouth, the blond launched himself along the rail to where Ace sat. Or, at least where Ace had _been_ seated. Izou was impressed with the older teen's flexibility. The freckled pirate had flipped over backwards, speedily reeling in his own cable-line as he went, landing on the balls of his feet just as Sabo touched back down on the rail. Both stared at each other for a few seconds.

In front of Izou, catching a sliver of the man's attention, Lu giggled. /( _Amused_ ) _Atce_ , would run if I were you./

The commander saw Ace twitch at Strawhat's giggle. Like a spell had been broken, the freckled teen immediately bolted. Brown eyes widened as the fire-user's mad dash brought him towards the geisha-like male and small pirate. Ace jumped only feet away from running Luffy over, landing on the roof of the helm above them. Sabo was a bare step behind the older brother. It would only be later that Izou recalled Luffy hadn't looked at all shocked or worried when both teens had come barreling at them.

/( _Excited Play! Notfair_ ) Wait!/ Completely forgetting what else he wanted to talk with Lady-Man about, Luffy promptly followed after his siblings.

The Sixteenth was left by himself (plus Luffy's abandoned pillow) on the back deck, suffering from whiplash due to the Trio's rapid behavior-shift. In a minor state of shock, he idly wondered if any of their previous crew acquired brain damage from long-term exposure.

* * *

Ace smiled to himself when Luffy bounded after them. No matter how nice the guy had seemed—how _any_ of them seemed—it didn't sit well with him leaving their little brother so unguarded. He and Sabo were strong and Luffy is as well. However, the fire-user has no illusions that the Whitebeard Commander is stronger than Lu and possibly stronger than he and Sabo. It would've been easy for the man to harm Luffy before they got close enough to defend him.

Ace didn't care that Lu trusted the man enough to not hurt him. He is Luffy and Sabo's 'Big Brother' which means he has every right to be suspicious of other's intentions regarding his tiny family and allowed to be protective of them. Sabo kept him from being alone and grounded him (somewhat) when they were kids. Luffy brought happiness and a sense of life to the duo; cemented them into a close-knit brotherhood. Sabo helped Ace survive and Luffy taught Ace how to live. He would do _anything_ to keep his precious little brothers safe.

 _'And screw_ Sávbó _for calling me "overprotective". He can be just as bad!'_

It was true too. Luffy was their 'guiding light' in an otherwise dark world. A world that hated and killed those simply for what they were.

In Lu's case, being not only the son of the 'World's Most Wanted Man' (named Monkey D. Dragon, leader and creator of the Revolutionary Army), but also for being one of the last Sky Kings. Sabo's blood relatives—Ace would _never_ apply the term 'family' to those horrid bastards—were the closest a Noble family could be to royalty without actually being one of those Celestial Dragon bastards. Then, there was himself: son of the previous Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.

Most of the world would hate Sabo for his Noble blood. 'Commoners' because the blond had once _been_ a Noble, even if Sabo renounced all claims to the fact. Nobles because the boy had _denied_ his blood and standing to become a 'piece of Commoner filth'. There were a couple times over the years that someone found out—and Ace still hasn't much of a clue as to how they did—about Sabo's relatives and tried to kill him.

Almost the entire Human population (he didn't know if this applied to other races) _hated_ and _feared_ dragons. The legendary Sky Kings were at the very top of that list; often hailed as being 'devils' or fearsome, bloodthirsty/deranged monsters. Creatures of nightmares. Not that dragons in general weren't given a bad rap, because they most certainly _were_ , people just viewed Lu's kind to be the epitome of what they feared dragons had the ability to become. The World Government would hunt Luffy down just for being _Dragon's_ son. Ace refused to think on what would happen if the Government also found out about their baby brother's mother. Luffy would probably have the _entire_ world after him for one reason or another if his true parentage got out.

It made Ace's family problems a little easier to swallow when he and Sabo realized the gravity of their young dragon's situation. He'd hated himself for being the cause of his only loving family member's death, just as he'd hated—no, _loathed_ —Roger for his part in Rouge's end and the omnipresent shadow over Ace's life. Ace knows that it was only because of sweet, little Luffy that the freckled teen turned out as well as he had. Just a couple years ago, he would've pounded Sabo into the deck for calling him a 'prince' or even implying such.

Now, he was grinning and running away from an equally enthusiastic blond. Normally Ace's comment on Sabo's lineage wouldn't have been met with such…fervor. But they were both tired and feeling kind of cranky, so the older teen wasn't _too_ shocked by the reaction… When he actually spared a quick second between dodges of a gloved fist to think about it.

Ace whooped as he nimbly avoided another of Sabo's blows by jumping up in the air and then kicking off the foremast to leap over his brother's head. A frustrated growl escaped the middle brother as he spun to follow. The freckled teen tensed and waited when he saw Sabo pause and stare at him. Ace wondered at the conniving smirk that spontaneously grew on the other's face.

For all of four quick ass seconds.

"HOLY SHIT!" Cold, salty water completely and utterly drenched him.

He sputtered, at a loss as to how a bucket— _'A_ big _frickin' bucket at that!'_ —of seawater made its way on deck to upend its contents all over him. Then Ace heard the damned cackling, followed closely by smug chuckling that still somehow sounded infuriatingly _polite_. The latter, he knows, is done just to push his buttons.

He growls at the high-five a cackling dragon and chuckling blond exchange, Luffy perched on a barrel. Huh, at least that explains the amount of damn water. Ace hadn't even realized Lu hid his presence sometime before the sneak-soak.

/( _Smug Happy_ ) You became too focused, _Atce_. Tunnel-vision is not good in a fight, remember? /

The freckled teen rolled his eyes at Sabo's cheeky smirk. They stopped to rest on an object off to the side. A wonderful idea blossomed in his brain. Sabo and Luffy's laughter dwindled, both likely sensing the twist Ace's thoughts took. When he turned to face them again, a mischievous grin forming, the laughter instantly ceased.

/Since _I'm_ all soaked now... Why don't I return the favor? / He saw Lu's eyes dart over the area Ace's had grazed. The brown-almost-black orbs widened a fraction. Ace waited a second for Sabo's to do the same, comprehension lighting the deep blues, before springing.

Luffy let loose a loud ' _meep_ ' as he unnaturally bent and dove away from Ace's grasp. Sabo kicked the empty barrel at his head; the Logia teen punched the stupid barrel, splintering it into pieces, without missing a step. Luckily for the blond, the pathetic attempt at distraction gave the top hat wearing brother an extra half-second of distance. Ace blinked once in the direction Sabo had taken off, then spun to race after his little dragon-brother.

 _'If I get Light, he'll help me with Waves!'_ He grinned at the younger's dismayed yelp when Luffy discovered who he'd decided to go for.

"Ace, go away!"

"Hahaha! Ah, c'mon lil' brother. You got me, it's only fair I get you!"

"Never! I used _seawater_! You're gross!"

Ace only laughed as he tailed the fleeing dragon, both enjoying the high that came from a shared sense of _funexcitedFamilylovehappy_ floating between them.

"It's just _water_ , Lu! You won't _melt_!"

"Dammit! No no no! Gaaah! Keepawayfromme!"

* * *

Vista stared at the deck of the grand _Moby Dick_. 'Shock' was probably the best word to describe how he felt at the moment. Maybe 'confused' too.

 _'Was there a storm that we were unaware of?'_

But that didn't make sense. Small storms were rare in the New World; and the term 'small' was very relative and debatable in its meaning with regards to the Grand Line's weather. Especially the New World's weather phenomena compared to Paradise's. Even a small New World rainstorm would've set the massive ship rocking.

The commanders had finished lunch and been on their way to see their Father. The man had wanted to speak with them about a changing of plans/tactics or something regarding efforts to recruit Ace and his siblings. Marco and Thatch (who left after a while, making it just Marco) had spoken to Pops that morning about things Namur and the Spades' ex-first mate told them. Afterwards, Marco came back to say there'd be an official meeting once lunch was done. Thatch wisely, in the swordsman's humble opinion, stayed out of the phoenix's way until lunch passed since the blond was possibly out for blood. The way he'd heard the cook paraded "the ghost's" pineapple-rendition of the First around, Vista felt it was more out of concern that the fruit would be slaughtered than Marco throwing Thatch overboard (again).

Already feeling nervous about the meeting they were headed for—knowing most of his brothers held similar emotions towards what might be shared—Vista was left a little off-balance by the scene he came upon.

Most, if not all, the Whitebeard Pirates spread about the deck were staggering about with either a dazed or frustrated look in their eyes. _'Okay, just most of them…_ ' Some were lying spread-eagle on the ground and looking as if they had given up on the world. Vista caught several with shoeprints stamped on various parts of their body, most commonly the chest or upper-back/shoulder areas. Although, he spied two grumblers sitting off to the side with a print each on their face. (Just because he remembered a similar showing from a few weeks ago, the Fifth Commander shot a quick glance up at the rigging to see if any pirates were having another go of being tree ornaments. The man mildly disappointed to find none.)

Once finished with processing the state of his ship-brothers, Vista's attention fixated on their surroundings. The bedraggled mass of pirates were stumbling and/or sitting amongst a sporadic wreckage of barrels and crates. There were also countless dents—ranging in size from several small ones to a handful of large—peppering the deck. Splintered gouges could be seen along the helm's front wall and Vista, squinting, saw a busted door at the opposite end of the ship that led to the division members' quarters. The rails weren't in much better condition; numerous spots looking to have taken a beating that ended in the section either needing sanding (to buff out the damage) or complete replacement.

"Uh… Wha's with the water?" The question which came from behind him— _'Rakuyo_ ,' his mind absently supplies—brought the other commanders just emerging onto the deck to notice the state of their surroundings.

Indeed, the entire deck was _covered_ in water. Puddles of liquid sparkled in the partial sunlight, some stretching several feet wide. Everyone, with the exception of those who had just arrived on the scene, were equally sopping wet; water dripping from soaked clothing and hands wiping away rivulets coming from hair that was beyond damp. When he'd glanced up, Vista had also seen several wet spots dotting the sails in various sizes.

Haruta muttered from off to the side, "Déjà vu much, anyone?"

Hearing a resigned sigh, Vista turned and caught Marco pinching the bridge of his nose with his eyes shut and brows furrowed. The man probably came to the same conclusion as he had about what—or rather, _who_ —was responsible for the mess before them.

"Blenny, _move_! I wanna see what everyone's staring at too!" A few seconds and some shuffling later, Thatch made an appreciative whistle as he looked around. "Damn! How come nobody invited me to the party?" The Fifth Commander shook his head in fond exasperation.

Marco growled warningly, " _Thatch_..."

"There you idiots are!" The not-quite-a-shout-but-still-fairly-loud statement announced the presence of their doctor sister, Whitey Bay. Striding over to them, heels clicking against the wooden deck, she said, "Pops says to get things settled out here first before meeting with him."

Raising a gloved hand, Vista gestured at the aftermath of what looked to have been an unusual battle. "Mind telling us what has happened in our absence?"

Bay huffed, tossing her long tresses over a shoulder. Turning to face them, she aimed a humored grin at the group. "Ooh~, you mean this?" The dual-wielding commander saw Marco look up and send their sister a look that clearly told her to get on with it. "It's the aftermath of a fight that became a water-war and eventually evolved halfway into a spar. The three brats only stopped when one fell unconscious and the other two lost the energy to continue. At least, that's what I've gathered occurred."

"Is anyone—"

"Don't worry, Birdy. Bay's already checked and the worst-off only have a twisted ankle and some bruising."

The Fifth Commander switched his dark gaze from his sister to the feminine man exiting the doorway that led to his Father's and usual meeting rooms. _'I was wondering where he'd gone_.' Izou had appeared shortly before lunch officially began, eaten a plateful, then left to go find Marco.

"Pops wants to start that meeting soon, you know. So hurry up and deal with this mess and then head to the Planning Room."

"Why not his room?" asked Blenheim.

Vista raised an eyebrow at the smirk that crossed Bay's lips. "Well~, if _you_ want to deal with a sulky Stefan—"

"The Conference Room has _very_ comfy chairs now tha' I think about it," Rakuyo cut in upon hearing the phrase "sulky Stefan".

The top-hatted commander couldn't fault the man's desire to not be anywhere near an upset battle-dog. _Especially_ if that dog is Stefan. Blenheim appeared to agree, for the large man quickly strode after the dreadlocked commander without another word.

"I thought _Marco_ was the only chicken we have on this ship," Thatch murmured with a cheeky smile. The man hopped to hide behind him when Marco shot a very unamused glare at the chef.

The Zoan took in a deep breath before relaying orders to the remaining commanders. He waited until they either left to complete their assigned tasks or followed after the vanished Seventh and Ninth Division Commanders. The only ones remaining were Vista, Marco, Thatch and Izou, Bay having disappeared below after a short, hushed exchange with the First.

"What was that about?" Vista asked.

Marco glanced at him then the other two. "Later yoi."

Izou looked like he was about to protest when Thatch interrupted with, "Do _you_ know what happened up here? And I don't mean that weak description Bay gave." Both swordsmen stared at the geisha-like individual with avid curiosity.

Folding his arms into the wide sleeves of his sage green with cream accents kimono, their brother showed them a smile filled with proud smugness. "First, I would like to say that I got Strawhat to sit next to me with Blondie and Freckles giving nothing more than a simple warning form their own seats ten-feet away." Marco's eyes widened slightly, the only sign of his surprise. Thatch was openly gaping at the Sixteenth with an expression that radiated the likely thoughts of 'no fair' streaming through his head.

"I bet Ace and Sabo were glaring at you the rest of the time," Vista chimed. He grinned when Izou shot him a moody look that basically confirmed his guess. _'Ace and Sabo are too protective to let the Little One be that close without them near_.'

At times, he thought the protectiveness displayed by the older pair to be borderline _possessive_ in nature. It wasn't lost on him the way they sometimes referred to one another as 'my/our brother' when speaking to someone. The phrase often came out when one of them thought someone was contesting their decision or actions towards a different member of the Trio. Ace seemed particularly prone to saying such when confronted about his behavior towards the younger Luffy.

Case in point, Vista discovered that a few members from the Sixth Division wanted to know why Ace was often spotted holding Luffy in his lap and not letting the younger boy go running about like he very obviously wanted to. The Little One had just shrugged and said that "Ace says 'no'" when asked about it. The freckled teen's response was much more…combative. After claiming the younger as _his_ baby brother so "of course he'd listen to me", Ace proceeded to show what he thought of the pirates' opinions—which essentially called the teen a possessive and overbearing brat—by putting them in the infirmary. Vista kept his concerns about the nature of the Trio's relationship, and the implied balance of power between the three, to himself. He did, however, start watching them with a more critical eye.

So lost in his inner-musing, the Fifth Commander almost didn't catch Marco asking what happened to lead to the chaos painting the wrecked deck of the ship.

He listened as Izou told of his morning encounter with the Trio, including how they left to go fishing with the youngest napping between them near the rail. The makeup-wearing commander lowered his voice when he got to the part about the Little One having a bad dream and how Sabo started whistling a tune the man didn't recognize—humming the same tune to see if any of them did, deflating a little when they answered in the negative—that eased the younger boy's mind without actually waking him. How the boy, even asleep, seemed restless and tense; the way both older brothers watched the younger like hawks while throwing the occasional wary or calculating (Sabo) glance at Izou. Sabo and Ace bantered back and forth, both neither quiet nor loud, and Izou had noticed how some of the stiffness that would build up in Luffy's tired body would ease at the noise.

 _'Does that mean the Little One isn't fond of silence?'_ It was definitely something to look out for.

Their sibling went on to describe how Luffy approached the man (complete with description of the forbidding looks aimed at him by the two 'hawks'). The teasing initiated between the older siblings, mentioning the peculiarity of both referring themselves as "princes". Izou's recounting of the initial chase preceded the account of what the commanders saw evidenced deck-wide.

"Then Strawhat slinks away right after I caught Blondie giving him a _look_. He comes back with a barrel and when Ace is distracted by Blondie, the brat hops over and dumps _seawater_ on him."

Vista interrupted his brother with an inquisitive, "You think it was planned?" Izou lightly snorted.

"It had to have been; Blondie and Strawhat high-fived after the brat's sneak-attack. What I don't understand is _how_ those two planned it out," the man grumbled that last part.

The Fifth considered those words while Thatch asked, "What do you mean? Didn't they use some sort of secret command or sign or _something_?" Their brother shook his head.

"Nope. Just a 'look' was all Blondie gave the tiny brat."

"Perhaps this is a normal occurrence? They _are_ brothers, therefore is it so surprising they would be able to communicate with such discreet signals? I've seen them do similar often enough when in their presence," Vista offered into the small, puzzled silence.

Marco slowly nodded, deep in thought about something. Thatch cocked his head side-to-side contemplatively before also assenting to his fellow swordsman's logic. The cook then earnestly asked Izou to continue his account of what led to the current disarray of the deck.

"Oh, that~… Hehehe," Izou giggled. "Ace got the wonderful idea to return the favor of being doused with water via dunking the two schemers into Stefan's water bowl! Strawhat Brat was taken down first and helped Freckles wrangle Blondie into receiving a dip." The kimono-wearer looked entirely too gleeful about the incident. Vista wondered if that was all that happened or if their brother was holding out.

 _'There probably_ is _more to the story. It's_ those three _after all._ ' He paused, remembering Bay's warning. ' _That would also explain why Stefan is being moody…_ ' A noise from beside him had Vista looking down at Thatch. He blinked.

The Fourth was a little pale and rapidly shaking his head, hands palm-out and waving in passive warning/pleading at Marco. The Whitebeard Phoenix had his arms crossed over his chest and leaning against the (dented) helm wall. Vista _would_ describe the other as the picture of lazy, except for the predatory gleam in half-lidded blue eyes that kept skating over Thatch. The mustached commander sighed at the sight, having an inkling (and very accurate) idea of what his brothers were thinking.

"Marco, if you did that then he won't shut up about his 'precious hair' for at least a week." The blond remained silent, returning his attention to a snickering Izou. Vista, however, caught the man's lip twitch up in amusement.

Apparently the chef did too, judging by the grumble of, "Stupid soon-to-be brothers giving blue chickens stupid ideas." He 'kindly' did not point out to the younger man that Marco had caught what was said. Or that the contemplative look in the First's gaze solidified into a determined glow.

Trying to get on with the story—because there was _no way_ this level of destruction was caused by Ace simply dunking his brothers in a dog's water dish—Vista probed, "I doubt either young Sabo or the Little One took Ace's retaliation lightly."

"Oh hells no! That's what started a huge water-fight that was also a deck-wide spar session!" Vista eyed the recovering pirates scattered about the area. Izou caught the look and grinned with clear laughter in his bearing. "Our siblings weren't involved in the water 'battle'. Directly, at least."

Marco sighed. He sounded resigned as he asked, "And indirectly yoi?" The Sixteenth giggled again.

The man's answer was a cheerful, "Unfortunate bystanders." All three stared, waiting for the amused crossdresser to elaborate. "The brats must've grown up in a forest or some such. They were racing around and either dodging or using those top-side as stepping-stools. Brats also made use of the masts and rigging during the fiasco to run around. Anyone who couldn't get away fast enough were susceptible to being drawn in as a launch-pad, shield, or cushioning a brat's landing." Well, that would certainly explain the defeated and exhausted slump of the surrounding men. "Those previously mopping the deck were also trying to avoid the buckets of soapy water that were being used as the brats' ammunition, alongside the random barrels of seawater."

"Why ya think they grew up in a damn forest?" Izou huffed and rolled his eyes.

"Because, you idiot, the way those brats moved was too damn _natural_ for it to be otherwise," he replied, scowling at that Thatch with an are-you-really-that-stupid look.

"How did it end?" He knew what Bay had said, but surely it wasn't as simple as that? Not when it was about those three.

"Bay wasn't exactly _wrong_ with her account. But she was repeating what those who were dazed and suffering from being knocked around told her." Vista narrowed his eyes, brows furrowing at the tingle of foreboding the other's statement elicited. He noticed that Marco's shoulders tensed, arms flexing under the dark purple jacket he wore that day.

Thatch straightened, a concerned note in his tone. "What happened?"

"I'm not exactly sure," was the slow, uncertain response. "Ace was near the rail by Pops' room when he seemed to stagger for a second while running. Strawhat then flew in from nowhere," Vista glanced over in time to catch a slight narrowing of Marco's eyes, "and tackled Ace. The two rolled before slamming into the helm wall over there." They looked to where Izou pointed at a large dent close to the floor by the wall's far corner.

Thatch whistled. "Bet Acey will be feeling _that_ later." Vista nodded in silent agreement.

"Actually, the shrimp hit the wall and got sandwiched between it and Ace."

"Is the Little One alright?" From the size of the splinter-edged dent, he thought it'd been the larger body of Ace that had made it. How hard did the smaller boy's body impact with the surface?

"Stop worrying, Vista. The shrimp was completely fine," the feminine man drawled. Vista still caught a look of understanding in the man's dark eyes and relaxed at the reassurance. "Strawhat made a stink about Freckles 'falling asleep while playing again' and Blondie quickly went over to settle things."

"But," Thatch started with a frown, "you implied something happened. We've seen Luffy and Sabo tackle or knock their big brother out before, so that isn't _too_ odd…" Izou sighed, a troubled light entering his eyes.

"When Blondie was still several yards away, one of the others getting up slipped on a patch of soap-water then tripped another who was stumbling by. That person accidentally knocked Sabo to the ground." Vista grimaced, already developing an idea of what happened afterwards. It would explain why Bay had been up here and not down in the infirmary. Marco looked grim too.

"Luffy… He saw, didn't he?" Thatch winced when their brother gave confirming nod.

"Brat seemed to freeze for a second, before growling and leaping at the one who'd knocked into Sabo." Izou glanced up from frowning at the floor. "Oh, don't get your panties in a twist," he admonished. "Blondie intercepted the little growler before the shrimp could do anything. Gave the 'offender' quite a fright, though."

"How'd Sabo stop the Little One?" Vista recalled the rough (albeit, effective) method the younger blond pirate used last time Luffy got mad and tried attacking Thatch.

Said commander appeared to be thinking the same from the distraught look on the auburn-haired chef's face. "Did Sabo—"

"No, he didn't stop the shrimp like wi—like _that_ time," Izou amended. Thatch deflated, appearing relieved at the answer. Marco also lost some of the tension in his bearing.

The older dual-swordsman remained a little worried and concerned over the small pirate-boy's condition. "How _did_ young Sabo stop the Little One?"

Izou huffed. Vista took no offense to the mock-exasperation of his sibling; the other was just trying to cover his own unsettled feeling. "What I _saw_ was Blondie jumping up and placing himself in Strawhat's path. The smaller brat struggled for a few seconds while Blondie held him and started whispering in his ear. Strawhat stopped growling and appeared to go limp after a minute. They went over and collected Ace before disappearing." Thatch let out a relieved sigh.

Vista also felt relief that things didn't end violently like in Thatch's case. Part of Izou's account, however, troubled him. "Are you sure Ace was knocked out when the Little One left him?" The brothers _never_ ventured from the side of one who sleeping or unconscious. At least one was always taking up the post of guarding the more vulnerable sibling.

"Positive. I think part of Strawhat Brat not immediately going after the guy who bumped Blondie is because he was making sure no one was close by." He gave an accepting 'ah' to the other's answer.

"What are you frowning over, Chicken?" Vista and Izou flicked their gazes to a brooding Marco at Thatch's question.

"Thatch, I _swear_ I'll dunk your ass in Stefan's bowl like Ace did the brats, yoi." The large Fifth Commander let out a sigh of fond exasperation and patient tolerance when the chef spun to hide from the blond Zoan behind him.

Turning back to the First, he asked "As our brother has pointed out, what are you worried over, Marco?" Said man glanced at him before clear blues moved to settle on the makeup-wearing male of the group.

"Two things, for now. One, when Sabo held Luffy did he place Luffy's head over his chest yoi?"

Izou untucked a hand from the sleeves of his outfit to hold his chin. After several moments the raven-hair slowly shook his head. "I'm not sure. He might've but it was hard to see from where I stood. Why?"

"A few times I saw the youngest get upset, one of the older two would hold him so Luffy's head rested over their chest. Specifically over their heart, yoi."

Now that Marco mentioned it, Vista is sure he's witnessed the same on occasion. Thinking back, the Little One had done what the Phoenix Commander described back when Sabo was trying to comfort the younger during the whole Bay incident. Now that he is deliberately concentrating on the action, Vista notices he's been seeing it a bit more often when he goes looking for them to chat.

 _'Especially in the early morning and when they come back after vanishing for an hour or so._ ' He frowns at that thought. _'They've been spending more time on the open deck lately._ '

Before, the boys would vanish for several hours at a time. This dropped to only a couple during each disappearance; probably to nap or sleep since they would come back looking more refreshed. Over the last couple days, he's noticed the Trio only go below for maybe an hour or so once or twice. Otherwise, the three can be found somewhere top-side at all times.

The large commander is brought out of his musings when Thatch asks, "You think it's a soothing or calming move Sabo and Ace developed for Luffy?" Marco shrugs.

"Don't know, yoi. From what I've seen, Strawhat seems to relax whenever he rests his head against their chest or upper back."

"Hmm… Could be useful to know. Should the Little One get separated from his brothers and panic, we'd possibly have a way to calm him until Sabo or Ace comes," Vista proposes to his ship-brothers.

Izou snorts and crossed his arms. "Before or after the runt bites you for touching him?"

The swordsman hides a wince and doesn't comment on the likely outcome such an encounter would offer. He can still vividly recall the large pool of blood from the small boy savagely biting and ripping into the First Commander's arm. The tanned skin and tattooed chest covered in blood. The dark stains soaked into Marco's clothes and the shredded sleeve of his jacket. The memory alone has him thanking whatever deity may exist that presented his adoptive brother the Mythical Phoenix Fruit.

"Ignoring Ms. Prissy-Pants here, what else were you gonna ask, Marco?" Thatch turned from shooting Izou what Vista would describe as a disapproving glare to face said blond.

Marco waited for a few seconds before saying, "Your story… Was it only Luffy who surprised you?" At the geisha-like man's expression of confusion (mirrored on Vista and Thatch), the Zoan added, "You said that the youngest came from 'nowhere', yoi, and never specified where he got the barrel of seawater. I'd even go as far to say that you sounded surprised when the brat showed up to dump the water on Ace yoi." Izou smirked.

"Well, I was going to mention this at the meeting… But I suppose now is good a time as any, since you brought it up and what not." Vista and Thatch exchanged confused glances.

"You think the Trio knows haki," the top hat wearing commander ventured. Since meeting and then spending time with the three young pirates he had wondered the same.

"So I wasn't the only one questioning that?" They all just kind of stare at the chef, which invokes an indignant, "Hey! You're not the only ones who thought it weird that it's beyond difficult to locate their presence half the time _even when you're damn searching for it_! Give me _some_ credit, at least." Vista opts to ignore the overly dramatic pout that his brother draws his argument to a close with. He hides a small smirk when he spots the other two commanders do the same.

"Let's not approach them about that right now, yoi." Vista eyeballs the still stiff posture of his older blond sibling.

"Besides the fact that even after three weeks we still know next to nothing about our hopeful new brothers… Is there something on your mind, Marco?" His gaze sharpens when he catches Thatch give an uncertain look at the First.

Marco shrugs at the question, façade of nonchalance a little strained at the edges. "Me and Thatch talked with Zack-yoi last night. Turns out, Strawhat gets something like 'cabin-fever' if stuck on a ship for more than a month without landfall. Said that at the four-week mark the kid starts getting unbearable to be around for even his brothers, yoi."

Vista is about to ask what he means by that when the feminine commander makes a small hum of understanding. Hearing this, he, Marco and Thatch all turn to stare at the man, all quietly urging him to share his 'discovery'.

"I've noticed that Strawhat's been getting very fidgety lately. Can't sit still, more than usual, and when I talked with the Trio this morning he was very tense." In a quieter, solemn voice, Izou added, "I don't think the runt's sleeping well, either. There's the beginnings of bags under his eyes that are only a little darker than the ones I glimpsed forming on Blondie and Freckles' faces."

"If all three have bags under their eyes, why do you say it like Luffy is the source?" Thatch asked with concern clear in his expression. The larger dual-swordsman pondered over how the man seemed more attached the runt than the older brothers. A close second would have to be Ace, though. Considering the number of times the chef got his 'buns' toasted trying to convince the elder brother to join their adoptive family.

Izou huffed, and then seemed to deflate with the answer of, "The little brat had a nightmare while I was with them, remember? I didn't know at first, since he was so tense and stiff even when asleep. What I forgot to say was how Blondie and Freckles seemed to be _expecting_ the kid to have bad dreams. Like it was somehow _normal_ for them." Vista gave his distraught brother a sad, understanding smile. Thatch crossed the short distance between both commanders to lay a comforting hand on a robed shoulder.

"We are going to be having a long meeting, yoi," he heard spoken in a sigh tinted with concern and mild dejection. Vista nodded in grim, unhappy agreement.

* * *

After they left the deck for the hold below, Ace slung over Sabo's shoulder like a sack of potatoes and the dragon taking rear guard, Luffy spent the first hour calming down and apologizing to Sabo. Mentally and verbally. Ace was brought up to speed once the narcoleptic awoke from his attack.

Lu told his older brothers he'd been feeling a growing sense of loss that "really hurt inside" him, but had tried ignoring it. The repeated nightmares and bad dreams were becoming worse and sleeping is quickly starting to be dreaded. He feels tired, but restless. Wants to sit or lay in a corner until the "pain that doesn't hurt but _does_ " goes away, but can't stand to be still because he'll be more aware of the itch under his skin. Needs to hunt and eat, though his hunger is dwindling lately and food starting to sound unappetizing.

When he saw Sabo go down because of that other Human and smelt traces of blood from the blond's skinned knee, Luffy was reminded of his most recent nightmare. Sabo and Ace couldn't really fault their little brother for his actions after hearing all of this. Between that and the draining effect of the water (which reminded the Trio they were still fairly soaked) it was no wonder Lu reacted the way he did. The elder pair made it very clear that the dragon was completely forgiven.

As Ace and Sabo were tired—again, everyone was operating with low energy levels and, fun as it was, running amok did not help the issue—they decided to stealthily make their way back to the stern deck. (After stopping by a bathroom to grab a towel for Ace; once dry, the fire-user could make short work of the younger two's waterlogged selves.) Normally, the brother trio would camp out in the lowest portion of the giant ship. However, Lu, in his current condition, would benefit best being in the open air and act as the sleeping pair's "watchdragon"—"Not a dog, so I can't be a 'watchdog'." Luffy giggled when the two just gave an exasperated sigh—while Sabo and Ace attempted to get some shuteye. Plus, Lu would be too tempted to Shift right now if they went there; even a partial transformation might end with an accidental full-Shift. The dragon's 'deadline' had advanced from the stress of the past weeks and, in his current state, Sabo and Ace would consider themselves lucky if they could get Luffy to Shift _back_ before breakfast the next day.

Upon reaching the stern deck, Lu went into a mild panic when he realized that he'd left his pillow behind. Someone at the helm must've noticed (or more likely _heard_ ) the ruckus, for Ace spotted one of the Whitebeards sticking their head out of the open wheelhouse door to look around. The freckled teen brought the onlooker to Sabo's attention (Luffy was out of the person's sight and busy sniffing the ground where he'd sat with Lady-Man, trying to pick up his pillow's trail) just before the pirate disappeared back inside. Both older teens exchange looks of 'what was that about?', shrug it off as the man being curious, then turn to help with the pillow hunt. The door opening back up behind them and the same pirate calling out to get their attention make Ace and Sabo glance back to see what the man wants. The ex-co-Captains' eyeballs immediately zero in on the object the Whitebeard is holding.

Sabo took the missing-now-found pillow from the navigator crewman while Ace whistled to Luffy. The brothers thanked the pirate for his help, in the process unknowingly stunning the First Division member speechless for a few seconds at the action. After getting control of himself, the navigator informed the trio that it was Izou who had told them (i.e. the helmsmen on duty) to make sure nothing happened to the bedding item and it was to be returned to Luffy when the boy came for it. At the dragon's slight mental prodding, the older pair silently agreed to thank the Sixteenth Commander as well.

It wasn't too long before dinner that Haruta came looking for the Trio—elected because of his smaller, and therefore less threatening, stature to collect the brothers for a meeting with Whitebeard and his commanders. The nineteen-year-old commander found his quarry at the stern deck—the first place anyone looked out of habit by this point—up in the crow's nest of the mizzenmast. (Ace had had another narcolepsy attack and the younger two of the siblings cuddled around him in the small space; Sabo choosing to take a light nap, Lu dozing and staring at clouds while using _kisú_ to 'watch' for intruders. The sleepers woke up, only a handful of minutes prior to the small swordsman's arrival, when the youngest of the Trio told them that the ship had _definitely_ changed course and was no longer following the established pattern of the previous three-ish weeks.)

Before he could call out to them and announce his presence, a straw-hatted Luffy poked his head over the edge. Haruta felt a tic pulse along his temple when the little brat brazenly exclaimed, "Ne, it's Green Poof! Sabo, Ace! Green Poof is here!"

Despite the scowling and politely-neutral-yet-curious faces of the two pirates that appeared on either side of the bratty loud-mouth, Haruta couldn't shake the odd feeling they were expecting one of the commanders to show up. He was part of the intelligence-gathering division and something about the three's expressions (though they never really changed) hinted that there was little, or probably closer to _no_ , surprise that Pops wanted to speak with the Trio.

In the space of a minute from the time Haruta makes his announcement, the three had dropped to the ground from their perch—not even wasting time, just dropping _straight to the damn ground_. The poor Whitebeard Commander at first winces, because _shit_ that had to have damned _hurt_ stupid Strawhat to land face-first the way he did. What confused him further (and makes him question the supposed protectiveness of the elder brotherly pair) was that Cowboy Hat and Top Hat didn't look the least bit concerned or worried for the youngest's welfare after the fall. He is officially ready to throw in the towel when the loud-mouthed idiot pops up from the deck and adopts the same what-are-you-staring-at-are-we-going-somewhere-or-not expression as the other two the Twelfth Division had been ordered to come get.

Haruta made the adult decision to not pursue an explanation on whatever just happened; instead, turned and led the Trio to the main Conference Room. He would tell his own brothers about the odd occurrence next chance he got. _After_ , of course, adding to his notes that the Straw Hat Brat was apparently immune to falling from heights of thirty-feet or less.

(Haruta wasn't aware that Luffy had survived falling from even greater heights even _before_ the dragon ate the Gum-Gum Fruit. A measly thirty-foot fall before hitting the wooden deck amounted to nothing more than a tripping flop made while walking to the brothers.)

* * *

Luffy clings to Ace's back, taking comfort in the flames lazily roped around his arms and upper torso. It's a position of safety and security to the dragon; a calming balm that Ace and Sabo use to help keep their little brother from becoming too nervous in new or uncomfortable situations. The habit had started when the youngest was much smaller and neither of the elder siblings had the mind or heart to break him of it. At times when things might turn hostile, Lu will latch onto the fire-user because his eldest brother's fighting style will be less restricted by the added cargo.

True, they may not be heading into a potentially violent or even physically harmful encounter. But seeing their little brother pause on the threshold of the door leading inside to the Captain's Room and the Conference Room, and knowing Luffy did _not_ want to be shut in a room with strangers, Ace silently and subtly shifted to offer Lu his back. The dragon smiled in relief, quickly latching onto the fire-user; arms looped around Ace's neck and legs hooked about each other around the older raven's stomach, leaving Ace's arms free as Luffy held himself to his brother's shirted back. Sabo calmly dropped back to take position watching his darker haired siblings' backs.

Haruta wouldn't have noticed the shift in the Trio's positions if he hadn't looked back upon realizing their pause at the door. He raised an eyebrow, subtly taking note the ease and silence with which the whole thing was accomplished. It only fueled the young man's determination to discover what secrets the mysterious Trio was covering up.

 _'Perhaps Marco knows something…_ ' Seeing they were ready, the Twelfth Commander continued on to the spacious Conference room set across from Pops' cabin.

Immediately before entering the room, all three brothers sensed the many presences behind the door; the largest being that of the Captain's. When their guide/escort opened the door, several things happened at once.

Luffy discreetly scented the air and mapped out the emotional states of those present besides his siblings. Sabo curtly analyzed the various commanders and Captain who watched them enter the room, cataloguing their body language and adding his findings to Lu's stream of intel. Ace's eyes quickly flickered about the area, mapping the conference room and searching for possible exit points in case they needed a quick getaway. Information on their findings was freely exchanged between the Trio via their mental link, the whole process taking barely a few seconds.

Seated at the large table dominating the spacious room (now considerably less so with almost all commanders plus captain present), the Whitebeards were completely aware of what the three were up to. Or, at least what Ace and Sabo were doing; Strawhat's shaggy black head was looking at each of them from over the oldest brother's shoulder.

Whitebeard silently commended the older pair of the Trio for their speed at taking in their surroundings. A minute after entering, the younger pirates' tension lessened a minute amount. Marco scrutinized the three as he caught the simultaneous action—Ace's steel gaze briefly perusing the assembled commanders before stopping on Pops' figure, Sabo's ocean blues copying the movement from the blond's place to Ace's right, Luffy resting his head on the same shoulder and face shadowed lightly by the orange hat on his brother's head—and wondered at it. No signal, that neither he nor anyone else in the room, were able to see. So why did the troublesome brothers' relax when they didn't appear to exchange any indication that there wasn't any threat?

 _'Not that we're trying to threaten them, yoi._ ' Marco let out a small huff at the thought. Luffy's focus, the dragon's sensitive hearing catching the small sound beneath everyone's breathing and fading speech at their arrival, immediately switched from where Green Poofy Shirt sat (after shutting the door to the room) down to the head of the table. The First Commander blinked in surprise when the childish pirate's dark eyes stayed on him for several beats before sliding away back to the other end of the room. _'Did he_ hear _that?'_

Thatch wondered the same, having been carefully examining the Trio for signs of malnutrition after hearing Bay's report during the earlier meeting held that day. _'I know Sabo told us they have good hearing and all… But only Marco and Namur have_ that _good of ears, and they aren't exactly_ normal _to begin with._ '

The only fishman commander and Whitebeard Pirate was carefully watching the smallest of the brothers, frowning a tad when he noticed the shrimp's scent was more human-like than his first impressions. True, the scent still didn't come off as wholly human, but you would only know that if you were capable of even picking up such tiny differences. As far as Namur knew, only Marco had noticed the runt's odd scent. It was disquieting to the Eighth Commander that whatever 'otherness' that made the boy smell not-quite-human-but-passable-as-one had diminished since his last clear assessment. His instincts were still telling him to be wary of the shrimp, but not as 'loudly' as previous times he'd gotten near the child.

Luffy kept his gaze wandering from one Human to another, fighting to loosen limbs stiff with mounting anxiety. It was comforting to find no hostility amongst the Humans present at first. Now, he just wanted out of the crowded space and be somewhere more open. Somewhere with no _others_ around so he might enjoy time in his true form with his precious _asalkynn_.

Ace, sensing Lu's increasing stress, called up a thicker tendril of flame to wrap about his little brother's waist. Sabo lifted his left hand to rub soothing circles the rubber-teen's lower back. The fire-user crossed his arms and glared up at the Captain—honestly, Ace was a little peeved that the giant man still required the three to physically _look up_ at him even when damn sitting.

Crossing his arms, Ace ground out, "Heard you wanted to speak with us, _Old Man_." Sabo really wanted to bop his older brother over the head sometimes. This was definitely one of those times.

The bond gentleman had to be content with settling for a mental _whap_ to the other's mind instead. Izou wondered what Blondie found so amusing after spying a tiny glint in the otherwise impassive blues staring exclusively at the ship's Captain. Maybe it had something to do with the barely-there-muscle-twitch he almost missed in Ace's forearm?

Several of the commanders bristled at the blatant disrespect of their Father. Some were audibly grumbling over how the teen practically sneered when saying 'Old Man'. Marco narrowed his eyes but made no comment. Vista tensed at Ace's tone and words, relaxing again once he realized a likely reason for the grey-eyed teen's ire (aside from Ace's usual prickliness). Pops probably noticed too, since the giant man hardly acknowledged the ex-captain beyond a fractional furrowing of the elder pirate's brows.

Whitebeard internally frowned when the older pair of brothers' actions seemed to barely alleviate the smallest brat's anxiety. The boy was probably feeling uncomfortable being in close-quarters with so many larger people; Ace and Sabo's stress-tense figures were likely a result of them being so attuned to each other's moods.

"Yes, I did," the Emperor replied evenly. Near-black eyes continued blankly looking over the room's occupants, never bothering to glance at the over-sized Captain. Going with his son's advice, Newgate made the decision to address a different issue. _'If Thatch is right, these three brats' behavior would make more sense. Marco's theory of how the youngest brat operates would also be founded. Bay also brought up a good point, however, and Izou's observations seem to support her concerns…_ ' Well, he'll get to that eventually. Right now, the pirate captain wanted to make the Strawhat Brat more comfortable and that meant clearing out the room of as many of his sons as he could. _After_ his first son followed through on a particular plan the Pheonix-Zoan proposed earlier.

Sabo's circling strokes slowed watching Captain Whitebeard incline his head to indicate the man sitting to the large pirate's right. "Before that, Marco has told me he wishes to address an issue between him and the cheeky little brat." Both Ace and Sabo shift their focus to the crew's first mate. Whitebeard offhandedly notices that it's only now Luffy chooses to include the Captain in his sweep of the people around the brothers, this time skipping Marco's form.

The Zoan commander straightened up from his previous slouched position. Casting a corner-glance at his adoptive father, the man levered himself out of his seat and then casually walked around the table. Keeping his gait easy, expression the usual placid look of boredom, Marco made his way towards the Trio. Ace and Sabo warily watched his approach, angling their backs to keep the wall behind them and the commanders and Captain in front. Looking in their eyes, beyond the very evident suspicion, the older blond thought he caught traces of… Expectance?

 _'Do they know what I plan to do, yoi?'_ He _had_ approached Sabo about his dilemma with Strawhat and, based on his talk with Zack, Sabo _was_ purported to be a schemer. _'Perhaps I shouldn't be so surprised, especially if Thatch-yoi is right about at least part of their past._ '

Sabo slipped his hand under Luffy's vest, resuming rubbing circles into the taut muscles while subtly using _kiví_ to bypass the tan skin's rubber-like quality. Mindful of his dragon-brother's growing uneasiness, Ace unconsciously began slowly shifting to a more battle-ready stance. Marco caught the fire-user's hardening gaze and prepared to stop.

/( _Calm Careful_ ) We planned for this, remember? Do not tense up, you will only make _Lú_ more nervous if you do. /

/( _Sorry Areright Willbecareful_ )/

Marco paused when the freckled teen corrected his posture to a more neutral, if still guarded, one. He crossed the last several feet in even strides once he was certain Ace wasn't going to object to his advance. Luffy began flicking his gaze more and more in the approaching Commander's direction, uncomfortable with the 'brother-stealer's coming ever closer. (He _knows_ the Human isn't Bad and has helped them many times and is very _nice_ … But Luffy's tired, hungry, restless, upset and hurting deep down though not sure _why_ , and is stuck in a cramped space with too many _others_ around to even pretend everything's fine. Therefore, it's not too surprising that the only thing he can focus on when he sees Marco getting closer and closer is 'this Human has taken and tried to take my Treasure before, so they might do it again'.)

Thatch watches, concerned hazel eyes tracking his brother's progress across the room versus the small, straw-hatted boy's tightening grip on the muscular body he's clinging to. The chef only catches that Sabo's hand is under the younger sibling's shirt now when he spies Izou's narrowed eyes pointedly staring at where the coat's blue sleeve vanishes under red cloth. The Fourth's attention, and everyone else's for that matter, was refocused on the straw hat toting teen when a low growl cut through the room.

Whitebeard calmly observed as his son promptly stopped his advance, a look of puzzlement flitting across the pirate's normally bored façade. Sabo flickers his gaze over the assorted commanders, seamlessly trading vigil with his younger brother the second he sensed the other's attention latch onto the First Commander. With how compromised Luffy's mental state was at the moment, it wasn't too surprising to the Trio that Marco wasn't allowed any closer than a few yards. Luffy ceased his growling it became apparent the Commander didn't plan on coming any nearer to his brothers, though he clung tighter to Ace upon sensing the rising tension in the room.

/( _Fine Okayalright_ ) It's okay, Lu. Calm down. Mr. First won't take me or Ace away from you. Do not worry./ Sabo let out a small breath as he felt a meager portion of his little brother's taut muscles relax. Ace rewarded the dragon with another small loop of flame twining around the deceptively strong arms looped around his neck and shoulders. Luffy calmed, comforted by his brothers' assurances and gentle heat of the fire lacing his skin.

Taking advantage of the older brothers' efforts, Marco cleared his throat to regain the youngest teen's focus. In the sudden quiet of the room, the First said, "Luffy, I'm sorry for making you think I was trying to take Ace away from you and Sabo. That wasn't my intention yoi." He ended his formal apology with a bow, much to the shock of his fellow ship-brothers and Ace and Sabo.

Luffy's fraying thoughts and nerves stilled upon hearing the First Commander speak. Marco's show of submission—the Zoan made the bow slightly deeper than he normally would've, complete with fixing his blue gaze on the ground, fully aware of how the move would be perceived by the younger pirate—and knowledge of his wrong-doing placated the dragon somewhat. The other had been completely sincere and he could sense nothing but truth from the Human. For the first statement, at least.

"You took Ace away. Sabo and Luffy got Ace back, but you took him again." The lie had been round-about, but there nonetheless.

Whitebeard raised an eyebrow at the blunt delivery of Luffy's words. The tone was one of stating fact. Not quite accusatory, but not far off either. The calm speech was belied by the piercing dark orbs fixated on his son's straightening figure, as if daring the older man to refute the teen's claim.

"You're right, yoi." Sky-blue met accusing black. Trying to inject as much sincerity as he could in his tone, Marco went on, "We— _I_ took Ace back after you and your brother retrieved him. He wasn't in good shape and we were worried he'd suffer a relapse of his injuries if he kept pushing himself, yoi."

Ace made to retort that the Whitebeards were partially to blame for his condition but remained silent when Sabo gave him a mental jab. Luffy hardly noticed his siblings' exchange, too absorbed in carefully reading the blond Human before him.

"You wouldn't let Luffy help Ace." Sabo and Ace suppressed a wince at where they knew Lu was headed with this argument. The commanders traded confused looks at the newest accusation. Blenheim opened his mouth to ask what the child meant when he was cut off by a sharp glance from his Father. In a louder voice, the dragon elaborated, "Ace was in trouble and you tried to stop Luffy from helping! Then let that mean White Coat try to take Ace!" Lu glared at the man.

"From what I heard, you did a damn nasty number on our brother's arm. You gonna apologize for that, runt?" Rakuyo retorted. He returned the dark glares Ace and Sabo shot at him with one of his own.

Marco sighed at the interruption and pinned the Seventh Division Commander with a look that clearly told the dreadlocked man to 'please stop talking now or I will damn make you'. When the other grumbled but, thankfully, acquiesced to the silent command, the Zoan took a small moment to be grateful over the fact Luffy's protective brothers were keeping silent.

"Not sorry." The small mumble was almost lost even in the near silence.

Speaking for the first time since Marco took the floor, Whitebeard looked down at the small child perched on the freckled fire-user's back. "What was that, brat?" Ace scowled at the term but another jab from Sabo helped him maintain silence.

The dragon stared at the arm for another four seconds. Moving his dark gaze to meet with Marco's lighter one, he repeated in a louder voice, "Not sorry." Whitebeard shot a stern look at his sons, silently telling them to let Marco handle this.

The commander in question simply nodded in reply to Luffy's up front declaration.

Ace, confused at the lacking reaction, blurted out, "You aren't mad at him?" The First Division leader shrugged.

"Hard to be mad when I'm the one at fault yoi. I grabbed him when he made to go after you, despite knowing he hated being touched. In my defense," here Marco aimed his next words at Luffy, "I was worried your brother would leap in the ocean after you, yoi. It's easier to retrieve one drowning Devil Fruit user than two."

/Lu does have a penchant for leaping first and looking last./ Sabo offered. Ace rolled his eyes but remained silent, accepting the bird-man's explanation for his actions.

"I'm not sure if you remember, but we were also trying to stop Bay," Marco paused at the confused head-tilt Luffy made at the name. "Uh, I mean the…'White Coat'?" Sabo gave small nod. "We were trying to keep the White Coat from getting close to you and Ace, but she can be very stubborn sometimes, yoi. Pops gave her lecture about disobeying orders, so you don't need to worry about her."

Luffy felt a little relieved to hear that. He'd been worrying about the mean White Coat making another appearance after catching her scent several times since the incident. He never caught sight of her; she seemed to make sure of that. But the dragon could smell the female White Coat was nearby and sensed her watching them. The observation had rattled him, and by extension Ace and Sabo, especially when she never made a move against them. It left him feeling spooked and snappish when people came near, even those he had extended a modicum of trust.

The dragon was about to speak when another of the Commanders shifted about in their seat. The distraction from his single-minded observation of Marco served to remind Luffy of just how many people were crammed into the room. Suddenly, the pressure of too many presences and unknown individuals grew heavier to him. The large room seemed even smaller, like it was pressing in on him from all sides. The itching buzz beneath his skin worsened to that dreaded crawling-bugs-under-skin sensation, causing a small shudder to race through the young dragon. Lu recalled that there was one exit to the room and the door leading to outside and fresh, open air was shut.

Too much. It was too much for him. Luffy ducked behind Ace to bury his face in the curly, long and dark hair. Breathing in the comforting scent that meant _home_ and _family_.

/( _Worry Concern Okay?_ )/ The only reply Sabo and Ace received came in the form of Lu lightly squeezing his rubbery arms and legs.

Newgate, of course, noticed the odd change in the youngest brat's demeanor. _'Perhaps I better move things along…_ '

In the next minute, most of those in the room slowly got up to leave at their Father's silent dismissal. Marco stayed put. In part to make sure that he could prevent something from happening while Luffy is in an obviously delicate state, judging from the hovering the older pair of siblings were currently displaying. It was a bit of relief when Ace and Sabo took the hint of what Pops wanted and moved away from the room's only door. Whitebeard had made it known that only Marco and Thatch were to remain in the room during the latter half of the planned discussion with the Trio. This arrangement officially being somewhat derailed when Izou, Vista behind him, pulled up short of the exit at a small question from Sabo.

"Would you mind staying a moment, Mr. Izou?" Seeing the kimono wearer cast a glance behind him at the large swordsman, the top-hatted blond added, "We are not opposed to Mr. Fifth either, if he so wishes."

Newgate nodded when his sons looked to him for direction, giving them permission to stay. He was curious as well about why the three—because it had to have been a group decision with how the ex-Spade worded the second part—requested those two's presence. It wasn't lost on anyone how Sabo distinguished between Izou and Vista either (the feminine male absolutely delighted at the unexpected change). What had the Sixteenth Commander done to get the younger blond to refer to him by name instead of title like the others?

Quickly, it is only the brothers and Marco who are left standing again. Luffy peeked back over his big brother's shoulder, sensing the lighter atmosphere now that most of the previous occupants had vacated the room. Ace eased his stiffened muscles as he felt Luffy's arms and legs some of their near-bruising strength. With less people in the room, and neither of his younger brothers giving any sign they were a threat, Ace doused some of the flames covering Lu in favor of looping his own arms behind and under to hold the younger raven in place on his back. Sabo sent a pulse of _calm_ and _safeprotect_ down their connection, a smile ghosting the corners of his lips when he sensed the dragon respond by letting Ace take more of their younger sibling's meager weight.

Marco was about to go sit down as well when a quiet word broke the descending quiet.

"Bad." He twisted to look back at the Trio. Luffy was staring right at him—no. The straw hat wearing one was staring at his _arm_.

"What yoi?" Dark eyes lifted to meet his light blue. A deep conviction shined through the younger pirate's gaze, though the First swore he could also see something else that he would claim bordered on…uncertainty?

Taking a calming breath, Lu answered, "I feel bad for biting you." Now that he could think clearly, Luffy really appreciated the older male for his earlier apology. The explanations he gave for his previous actions against him and his brothers were equally reassuring. Especially considering the Human was (and is) willing to admit his wrongs while standing before his Alpha and others of import in this _sídna_. Those were good qualities of a trustworthy _kýn'viil_.

Ace and Sabo tensed as the older pirate mulled over their little brother's words. They didn't think he would really _do_ anything to them over Luffy's lack of apology. Physically, at least. Maybe push him away from trying to get closer to them, since Lu would never get closer than this to saying sorry for his shredding of the commander's arm. People tended to not respond… _well_ to Luffy not apologizing for something the dragon doesn't wish to make an apology for.

Marco lightly pondered the younger teen's words, mind reaching back to his previous discussion with Sabo. Then even further back to the late evening of the day Ace almost drowned. The boy _sounded_ apologetic. Words and tone ringing of genuineness that were matched in the expressive black eyes carefully analyzing him.

From his seat, Vista watched as Marco turned back around to face the Trio. The First Commander lightly inquired, "Does that mean you are 'sorry' about biting me?"

Everyone noticed the subtle shifting of Ace and Sabo to put Luffy in a more guarded position between them. Whitebeard frowned at the display. The added wariness in the older pair's expressions showed they'd encountered problems of a comparable nature in the past over the younger's 'apologies'. Or lack thereof, as the case may be. At least the youngest brat wasn't as closed-off as his older siblings upon hearing Marco's inquiry.

Luffy shook his head at the blond Human's question, completely ignoring his brothers' hesitation and wariness. The Human wouldn't hurt them and he seemed more amused and curious than offended. _'I like him!'_

Marco nodded, having expected the negative answer. He would've asked _why_ the shaggy-haired teen disliked being touched so much by others… _'But I don't want to end this on a sour note, yoi._ ' The two older brothers were looking very defensive and he didn't want to accidentally rile them. Besides, the fact that Luffy even offered that odd not-apology meant that the boy had forgiven him. Or, at least _accepted_ the commander's own apology.

Aloud, the Division Commander replied with a soft, wry smile, "Fair enough, yoi." Luffy canted his head to the side, trying to sense if the man was upset. Finding nothing, he beamed at the man and settled his head on Ace's shoulder.

Marco nodded at the Trio again, taking in the twin confused and suspicious glint in the grey and blue-eyed brothers, before turning around resuming his seat at his Father's right. Seeing the discussion closed, though Newgate also wished to inquire about the youngest brat's dislike of touch, he raised an over-sized hand in a gesture for the three teens to take a seat.

"I can see that the youngest brat doesn't wish to be cooped up in this stuffy room for longer than necessary. If you don't mind sitting so we can get to the real reason I asked for your presence?"

/( _Curious Please?_ ) Can we thank Iz-Iz for keeping Pillow safe?/ Ace stiffened then slumped slightly at Lu's request. Sabo removed his hand from its ministrations against the dragon's back, placing it instead on his older sibling's upper arm.

/Fine./ Sabo rubbed the freckled teen's arm in a comforting, almost placating, way.

To Whitebeard, the top hat wearing blond asked, "Pardon me, Captain Whitebeard, sir." Said man inclined his head at the polite tone. "Before we go further with this…discussion, might we take a moment to say something to your Sixteenth Division Commander?" Curious as to what they may say, Newgate waved for them to proceed.

Reluctantly, Ace shifted to face the feminine male. As one, the standing brothers shallowly bowed (Luffy bowing by extension as he was still molded to Ace's back) and said, "Thank you for retrieving our little brother's—" "my" "—pillow this morning, Mr. Izou.—" "—Sir." "—Iz-Iz!"

Silence. The three glanced curiously—Luffy at least, Ace and Sabo were hiding the desire to laugh and/or smirk—around them at the four commanders and Captain.

Thatch, Vista and Izou were openly gaping at the three brothers. Marco's half-lidded eyes were fully open and staring at the Trio as if they all had grown a second head. Whitebeard was best at hiding his emotions but Luffy could still sense the surprise coming from the extra-large Human.

/( _Amused_ ) Did we accidentally break them?/ Lu asked his siblings after another several seconds of stunned silence passed.

Now Ace and Sabo _did_ smirk. Partly because their dragon had been the one to make the jest—showing Luffy was finally relaxing in the less crowded and overbearing atmosphere—and partly because…well… He was rather spot on in that joking description.

Sabo moved to midway down the table, Ace following his lead. While heading to their new location, he off-handedly remarked, "Do not worry, Lu." Vista snapped his mouth shut when blue and grey eyes casually roved over him and his adoptive family. "They do not appear 'broken' to me," the blond finished dryly. Marco schooled his features back into one of mild boredom when Ace looked over at him and the brat's smirk widened.

The act of pulling a couple chairs out from the table to sit in seemed to dispel the shocked stillness lingering in the older pirates. Newgate felt a little disappointed to find the Trio had decided to sit a few chairs down from Marco and diagonally opposite the nearest commander, Izou. Their chosen place, likely by no coincidence, also placed them near the door but not directly in front of it. Vista and Marco also noticed this. The practiced way that Sabo had selected the most easily defendable position that still allowed for a quick escape (should one be needed). How Ace naturally placed himself closest to said door and nearest commander, a barrier against any possible attack to the teen's tiny family.

It left a sour taste in the back of their mouths.

Thatch was watching, with some amusement, Luffy transfer himself seamlessly from Ace's back as the older teen sat to Sabo's lap. A grin forming as he spied a pout flash across the fiery brother's face at the loss of his burden. Lu glanced around from his new spot on his blond sibling's lap, wondering why he suddenly smelled and felt traces of anger from the other Humans. He was distracted by the bright grin on Pom-Pom's—Thatchy's—face, barely noticing most of the flames circling his form disperse. Ace, curious as to what held the dragon's interest, looked over to see the Fourth Commander grinning at him. Thatch chuckled at the immediate scowl thrown in his direction. Sabo sighed at his brother's reaction, ruffling Lu's soft locks before focusing his gaze on the Captain watching everything with critical yellow eyes.

Seeing the invite for what it was, Whitebeard cleared his throat to gain the others' attention. "We'll be stopping by an island in a couple of days to get some supplies. There's a Marine base on one part of the island along with the area's only town. The _Moby Dick_ will remain out to sea a ways and those going to the island will do so on the smaller ships stationed below." Ace and Sabo looked expectantly at the Captain, already knowing where this was likely going.

"Worried we'll jump ship at the first opportunity?" Izou couldn't help the snort that escaped him at Ace's snide remark. Vista hid a wince but remained silent.

"No offense, kid," Marco started, an amused lilt to his voice and lazy expression, "but you don't seem the type to give up on something you've set your mind on, yoi."

A teasing smirk crossed Sabo's face. /( _AmusedDelighted_ ) Whatever do you suppose gave them _that_ particular impression, dear _Atce_? /

Luffy giggled. /( _TrueRight Amused_ ) _Atce_ is very stubborn! /

Ace half turned to growl at his brothers. /( _Annoyed_ ) I don't want to hear that from _you_ , _Lú_. / He huffed when the top hat wearing blond's smirk only grew, turning back around and slumping in his seat a little to face away from his teasing siblings.

Resting his chin atop the younger boy's head, Izou saw Sabo's smirk fade into a cheeky, nearly smug, grin. /Aah~ I believe dearest Big Brother is sulking, Lu./ The dragon giggled again.

Tilting his hat down to shade his eyes—he _was not_ 'sulking', dammit!—Ace growled back, "Shut it, seafoam-for-brains."

Vista had to wonder at the odd names the three (mostly Ace and Sabo) called each other. From what he'd managed to gather they stuck to a vague theme. Always something fire-based or fire-related for Ace. Understandable, given the teen's Devil Fruit. The Little One's—now that he thought about it and began paying attention since that night after Luffy's panic attack—relating to being 'bouncy' or 'stretchy' or 'rubbery'. Again, probably because of the boy's Devil Fruit. Sabo's, he realized, always involved something liquid or sea-related for whatever reason. The Fifth is fairly certain the middle brother doesn't possess a Fruit power, so the references were admittedly puzzling.

 _'Perhaps, if they don't mind, I could ask about it after the meeting?'_ It was worth a shot. He and the others found the youngest, Luffy, to be rather open on several subjects. One needed only _ask_ and the small teen would either clam up or provide an answer fairly readily.

Sabo gave a small, indifferent shrug to his brother's childish retort. Face clearing of any previous mirth, neutral blue eyes flicked up to meet the Captain's piercing yellow. Thatch felt some confusion when the cold and distant blues briefly met his own warm hazel, a murmur of quiet contemplation in the blond teen's features, before they slid back onto Pops.

"Though my brother's implied claim has no merit, as Mr. First already deduced," calculating eyes quickly scanned the commanders' forms before alighting back on Whitebeard. In that same cool and distant voice—completely at odds with how gently Sabo was holding his younger brother sitting in his lap, chin floating just above Luffy's shaggy hair—the ex-Spade finished, "Am I correct in assuming you have a reason for telling us this, Captain Whitebeard, sir?"

Marco's sharp eyes (still keeping his bored façade going) focused on the younger blond pirate. His father replied, "Hmph. Cheeky brat. Since we'll be staying for a few days, I think it would do you some good to run around on dry land." There! It was small but the Phoenix-Zoan knows he'd caught a faint glimmer of satisfaction. Like Sabo had been expecting to hear this from the giant captain or knew the other man was going to bring it up.

Ace's wary gaze flickered between the five men sitting away from him. So far, everything was almost as Sabo had planned; a few differences here and there, but still within his brother's scheme's scope of possibilities. Tilting his head up so he could look directly at the massive Captain Bastard-Beard, and semi-ignoring Lu's prod of _notnice_ at his new name for the Captain, Ace muttered, "What's the catch?"

"Catch? Why do you think there's a 'catch'?" Izou inquired. _'Not that there isn't one, of sorts. It's mostly for their own good, anyway._ '

Ace let out a derisive scoff and leaned back in his chair, folding tan arms across his chest. The left sleeve of his shirt bunched up a tad and Thatch caught a glimpse of another tattoo, one he hadn't noticed before, before the garment resettled and covered it up again. The chef was brought back to the conversation at hand when the fire-user challenged, " _Nobody_ does anything for free. There's always something in it for them."

Whitebeard narrowed his eyes at the bold statement and utter certainty with which the fire-brat spoke it. Yellow shifted to look over at the two younger brats seated behind the freckled teen. "You include your brothers in that belief," he half-asked, half-stated.

Ace looked ready to fume at the veteran captain's words. A dry chuckle from Sabo had the other's dark look fading to one of wry humor and open acceptance. Marco blinked at the odd change.

Repeating his previous comment to Ace and Lu aloud, Sabo said, "Correct. As Ace so eloquently said, 'nobody does anything for free' for there is always something they stand to gain in the exchange. Even between us, that statement holds very true. We are just…"

"More open about our selfishness," Ace finished for his brother. Luffy smiled, bright and cheery at the almost boastful way his big brother relayed those words to the other Humans.

After spending so long living with a Drakkón, who were fairly selfish creatures by nature, it was only a matter of time before Ace and Sabo picked up the trait. To see Lu so open and carefree about the fact he could be a very selfish little bastard was…kind of daunting and foreign at first. Once they'd gotten used to it and, after a headache-inducing (for various reasons) discussion with the dragon, Sabo was able to reason that _anything_ a person did was based on some form of selfish desire. Whether the individual was aware of it or not. Swallowing that pill of 'truth' made it easier for Ace to deal with his own problems in a small way; Sabo facing his in a similar mindset. While Humans strived to hide their selfish tendencies or badmouth others for them, Luffy and his kind view such a thing as a natural part of what they were and not something to be ashamed of. To emulate that mindset has been… _freeing_ to the older pair. Something that brings a sense of freedom and empowerment to their lives that had been sorely lacking before that.

Marco's lazy mask cracked under his astonishment at how the three brothers seemed completely unashamed about Ace's declaration. _'No, they really_ are _unashamed. I'd wager they're even damn_ proud _yoi._ ' He could sense that even his brothers and father were staring rather incredulously at the Trio much like he is. By the damn seas, what an enigmatic bunch his brothers-to-be were. _'I see lots of headaches in my future_ ,' the First Commander thought resignedly, letting out a huff as he leaned back in his chair and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Catching his son's reaction, Whitebeard chuckled softly (or as soft one can be when of his size and stature) and the rumbling sound released the other three from their surprised and mildly shocked stupors. Izou tittered lightly while Thatch and Vista belted out their laughter.

Through seemingly blank eyes, Lu carefully analyzed them. /( _HappyGlad Good?_ ) Shocked and surprised, but not upset. ( _Confused Curious Why?_ )/

Sabo and Ace couldn't blame their brother for his sense of confusion. People usually didn't react well to being told they did things based solely on self-interest—understatement, really, for such insinuations of a person's character generally brought on a fight in their experience and understanding. Being lumped in with a grand majority and told you were no better than any other person in the world also seemed to be an ego-breaker. Who knew?

Looking to his Father, and receiving a nod in return, Vista spoke up over his brothers' quieting laughter, "I suppose there is a condition, of sorts, that we ask you listen to." When all three turned to stare at him, the Fifth continued, "We'd like for you to eat in the galley, starting with supper tonight."

/( _Dreaddreaddread No!_ )/

Thatch grew concerned when the stares of the Trio turned to looks of dismay (on Sab and Ace) and Luffy turned around to bury his face in Sabo's blue coat.

"Luffy…" Sabo held his nearly shaking brother closer. Images of a large room filled with people— _too many too many, trapped, outnumbered!_ —flitted across their bond to him and Ace. Lu shook his head at his older brother's quiet request. The blond sent the freckled raven-hair a look that could only translate as 'please help.'

Marco opted to remain silent and watch. Sabo had already explained that Luffy wouldn't likely listen to anyone other than the two sitting beside the boy. He saw no point in wasting his breath and was gratified to know that his Father was taking the same stance of waiting to see how this played out. The bird-zoan also ignored Thatch's hesitant glances that silently implored him to step in like he normally would.

Izou and Vista eyed the Trio with mixed feelings. On one hand, they were worried about the youngest's negative reaction. On the other, all three, though Luffy especially, looked thinner and a little paler than just a few _days_ ago. Their health was declining and neither they nor the rest of their ship-siblings would be able to help the Trio if they first didn't start improving. Not to mention, Pops still wanted to address some of Bay's misgivings and theories regarding the mysterious relationship of the brothers.

With a determined edge to his voice, Izou stated, "We'll be heading to the island regardless if you accept our terms or not. The only difference is whether you're allowed on land with or without a babysitter, or maybe even let off the ship at all." Izou cut off his next words at a piercing glance from his Father.

Luffy started growling as soon as the kimono-wearer began speaking, rising in volume as the boy grew tenser with each word. Being hypersensitive to the emotions around him right now, Lu heard and felt the man's desire to possibly force them into eating in the galley. Ire and indignation rose over the feelings of dread. The dragon became oblivious to the Sixteenth Commander's underlying scent of worry and mild confusion at the youngest pirate's actions. All he could think of was that this Human was trying to command him. Trying to force a decision on him against his will. Wanted Luffy to be trapped in a crowded room full of people—

"Luffy," Ace broke in, the name quick and sharp with a low warning tone. The commanders and captain watched as the dragon went still and silent. Hands gripping the blue coat of the younger blond eased as a sound falling between a whimper and pleading whine echoed from Luffy's throat. Big, shiny near-black eyes peaked up at Ace, a quiet apology drifting along a brief touch of Luffy's mind to his. He smiled and reached up to gently ruffle his little dragon's hair, accepting the show of submission and forgiving the younger for the slip in unfounded aggression.

Seeing Lu wasn't about to try and engage anyone in a fight anymore, Sabo relaxed his hold on the smaller teen. /( _Worry_ ) You need to eat, Light. You are too underweight as it is./

Luffy glanced up then away from his sibling's piercing blues. /Not hungry./

/Liar./ Ace huffed. Luffy barely flicked his eyes to meet worried grey before resettling them on the ground.

Not wanting things to spiral further along down a bad note, Thatch quietly interjected into the two's obvious silent conversation. "Umm… If it helps," everyone, bar Luffy, turned to look at the chef, "we can make it like when you first came here. Eat before or after everyone else so the mess hall is pretty much empty." _Now_ everyone was looking at him. The expression on Izou's face was bordering on annoying though.

Said commander snorted. "Wow. That almost sounded intelligent. I hope you didn't hurt yourself thinking that up, dear brother," the Sixteenth ended with a tone of mock-concern. Thatch glowered at the teasing grin.

The Trio was only half-aware of the mini-argument that followed; too busy trying to get Luffy and then Ace to agree with the chef's proposal. It irked Sabo that once he finally got his stubborn _little_ brother to agree, his almost-as-stubborn _older_ brother started to have misgivings about the whole thing. He was starting to wonder, again, how the hell he turned out relatively normal with these two D's for brothers.

Marco rolled his eyes as he watched and listened to poor Vista try and redirect the teasing/bickering duo back to the matter of import. Either the Fifth had chosen to sit between the Fourth and Sixteenth precisely for this reason, or he'd sat there by accident and thus felt some obligation to play referee for the verbal match. His wandering gaze caught the look on Pops' face, causing Marco to turn and see what his father was observing. He raised a thin eyebrow at the sight.

The Trio were having another of their "silent conversations"…or argument, more like. Sabo was giving Ace a glare promising pain, or something equally unpleasant. Luffy was glancing between both older teens with a pout on his face. Ace, shoulders tense and arms crossed, was alternating between shooting semi-guilty looks at Luffy and glares of defiance at Sabo.

Marco felt a corner of his lip twitch up in amusement, only to go wide-eyed a moment later. Both of Whitebeard's brows arched in slight surprise and shock, which Izou took prompt notice of and looked over to see what had happened. The sudden silence from his verbal-sparring partner got Thatch's, and consequently Vista's, attentions.

Lu, tired of his brothers' back and forth argument, extricated himself from Sabo's arms to clamber over to his oldest sibling. Plopping his butt down so that he was straddling Ace's lap, the dragon cupped Ace's jaw in his hands and dragged his brother's face down to meet his. Surprised by the younger's sudden action, Ace, unfortunately, was unable to stop his forehead from colliding with Luffy's (who had used a subtle amount of _ki_ to make sure his older brother felt the impact).

Dark brown glared into bewildered grey once Ace finished wincing from the abrupt contact. /( _Fine OkayAlright_ ) Stop worrying, _Atce_. Thatchy is Good! /

The freckled teen scowled. /How do you know he won't do something? Or one of these other bastards isn't up to something? Or—/ Luffy squeezed his brother's face, causing his lips to purse in a comical fashion.

Sabo couldn't help chuckling at his older sibling's expense. The snickers were renewed when he caught sight of the gaping mouths and stunned expressions of Mr. Fourth, Fifth, and Mr. Izou. From their point of view it must look like his brothers were engaging in an act unfit between supposed siblings. Mr. First and Captain Whitebeard looked equally amused by the three from what he could tell.

/Giant Banana Mustache Old Man is Good. Pineapple-Head is Good. Mini-Mustache Man is Good. Iz-Iz is Good./ Lu paused and his eyes softened. In a gentler 'tone' he added /( _Hope Pleasebelieve True?Yes?_ ) Thatchy helped Sun. Wants to _know_ and be _friends_ with Luffy's Sun. Thatchy's Good, yes? / Ace huffed then let go a small sigh. Finally, he smiled warmly down at his precious little brother.

Unwrapping his arms, the fire-user took hold of Luffy's hands and lowered them to the tops of his brother's thighs. Raising his head, Ace pecked his little brother's brow to show he understood and would follow Luffy's and Sabo's lead. He'd give these people a chance.

Marco smothered a fit of chuckles as the 'cheeky fire-brat' gave the younger raven another peck on the forehead, wrapped Luffy in his arms and brought the smaller teen closer to his front. Ace, resting his head on Lu's, stared right at Thatch, Izou and Vista and gave them a big, shit-eating smirk. Vista swore he heard Izou's jaw hit the ground and Thatch's dislocate. That look on the older brother and the way he held the Little One positively _screamed_ 'Mine!' to everyone who saw it. The level of possessiveness being exuded only increased when Sabo, wishing to mess with the three commanders' heads, casually reached an arm around Ace's shoulders and leaned closer to his brothers. To further the effect, he lifted the other hand to rub Luffy's nearest arm—making the younger hum in pleasure since Sabo used _ki_ to gently massage the muscle—while giving a ghost of a these-are-mine-not-yours grin to the staring bunch.

Newgate shook his head at the pair's antics. Wishing to save his sons from possibly getting 'broken' again, he cleared his throat. "So brats," grey, black, and blue eyes moved to rest on yellow, "do you agree to with Thatch's offer and eat in the galley?"

Ace nibbled on his lip. He'd sorta promised to give these people a chance…an indirect and unspoken one, sure. But a promise nonetheless. Luffy would be _pissed_ if he broke it. He nodded in answer to the giant man.

"Yeah, we'll go with the b—" Luffy made a warning growl and tightened his hug around Ace's torso. Wisely taking the hint (Lu's temper was on a short leash and he didn't want the fuse growing shorter), he quickly corrected himself, "The _cook_ 's idea. On one condition."

"Oh? And what would that be, brat?"

Ace's stare transferred over to Thatch. Grey hardened into steel as the fiery teen demanded, "Nobody makes fun of how much Lu eats." He remembered on too many occasions the callous remarks and jabs people made at his little brother over the sheer size of his appetite. Sabo ate almost as much as himself, while he and Luffy could be considered walking black holes when it came to food. That was still no reason to call their little brother a monster for being able to out eat Ace (and maybe Sabo, too, on a good day).

Luffy, at feeling the unhappy emotions rolling off his big brother, lightly squeezed the other and began to shallowly thrum. Not enough to make sound (Pineapple-Head was really close and he had to be careful), but enough for Ace to feel the vibrations in his chest. When Ace loosened his grip on Lu (not able to recall when exactly he'd started tightening it), the dragon gave a mental trill to soothe his brother as he nuzzled against the fire-teens collarbone.

 _'Again. Luffy is keeping his head near where Ace's heart is, yoi._ ' To keep one of his siblings from accidentally sticking a foot in their mouths (like Izou had unintentionally done), Marco replied with a shrug, "Fine yoi."

Thatch nodded his head eagerly, "Yeah! Like the flaming chicken said, it's no problem!" The Head Chef grinned at the Trio, happy that they were _finally_ going to be eating regular meals. "We're used to dealing with a D's appetite since one of our brothers is one and he's been with the crew for several years now. Two more shouldn't be much of a challenge if you eat like him." Sabo, Ace and Luffy tensed minutely at the words.

/Lu, did you know there was another D on the ship and forget to inform Ace and I?/

The dragon gave the equivalent of a mental headshake. / _Atce_ is the only one besides me. No other Descendants nearby. /

/It's a big ship. You sure you didn't somehow miss them?/

Luffy internally scoffed at his oldest sibling's insinuation. /Not _that_ big. I could sense _you_ well enough to follow when I was little! ( _Proud_ ) Even when in Foosha Village could kinda sense Ace./

Whitebeard quietly observed the young brats quick and silent exchange. Sabo, at last, becomes aware of the Captain's scrutiny and tells his siblings that they'll finish this discussion later. Even though their mental talk spanned hardly half a minute, Sabo doesn't want to take any chances with risking Lu's identity. Ace is fast to agree, Luffy following suit after checking to see if Big Banana Mustache's mood has deviated from before they started 'speaking'. All three are relieved at receiving a negative on that front.

To distract from their short silence, Sabo decides to clue the Fourth Commander in on something about them and their eating habits. "Fair warning, Mr. Chef. While my appetite is greater than the average person of my size and age, _these two_ ," a genial look planted on his features, Sabo hooks a thumb to point at the two brunets sitting to his left, "are walking black holes." Vista snorts and grins at the description.

"Don't worry, young Sabo. Your crew has already informed us of your eating habits and Thatch has prepared accordingly." Whitebeard, noticing the ex-captain's expression take on a slight strained look at Vista's dismissing of his words (or, more likely, being called "young") moved on to another topic Marco and Thatch had brought to his attention.

"I have noticed that the runt," Luffy frowned up at the large Human, but couldn't stop a small smile when he sensed no ill-intent meant by the term, "has been rambunctious and fidgety lately. If you three want, you are welcome to use the sparring space on-deck and the training rooms." Before either Ace or Sabo could respond to the Captain's invite, the dragon made his confusion over the gesture known.

"Eehh!? But Sabo and Ace says we're not _allowed_ to play rough when on a ship!" The Whitebeards stared at the small pirate while the boy's older brothers groaned in mild exasperation.

Thinking of the damage accrued during previous occasions of the Trio's show of power, including the water-fight earlier, the commanders all shared the same thought. _'If that's not considered rough play or sparring, what the hell_ is _?'_

"Uhh… Weren't you sparring with each other before lunch?" Three different-colored stares turned to Thatch. Ace smirked, enjoying the confusion Lu sensed from the three commanders.

The freckled teen chuckled. "That? Nah. Just a water-fight with an easy game of Tag thrown in." Luffy pouted as he remembered the "game's" results.

Vista grinned at the petulant look the Little One gave the older brothers. "Ace cheated."

Said brother stopped his chuckling to stare down at the boy in his lap. Sabo massaged his forehead as a forced smile made its way onto Ace's face. Pinching his little brother's cheeks (knowing the pressure didn't even register as pain since he wasn't using _ki_ ), Ace stretched Luffy's face a little to form a long, flat line out of the younger's lips. Needless to say, the five other pirates were, at first, various shades of shock over the fire-teen's roughness; their expressions quickly morphed into disbelief at the display of Lu's Devil Fruit power.

In a faux tone of wonder, the Flame-Flame Fruit holder questioned, "What was that? I coulda _sworn_ I heard something, but it must've been my imagination…"

Luffy scowled at his brother's actions. A thought flitted to the straw hat wearer's mind and Ace became uneasy at the echoes of joy mixed with mental laughter coming from their younger sibling. "Mm-ni Fah-nana Musth-tash ish unha-wee ah-wout hish wa-wur f-owl."

Ace paled slightly and let go of Luffy's face, allowing it snap back into place. Sabo laughed at his older brother's expression of minor terror. There was no doubt in the blond's mind that Lu would be helping the battle-hound in getting revenge on Ace. The mischievous light in the dark orbs and not-so-subtle thoughts from the dragon served to confirm this.

Izou, ignoring the odd showing of what was likely part of the shrimp's Fruit ability, asked, "For those of us who don't speak gibberish, would one of you mind translating that?"

"According to Lu, 'Mini Banana Mustache is unhappy about his water bowl'," Sabo replied, shooting an I-almost-feel-sorry-for-you grin at Ace.

Getting twitchy once again, having decided they'd been cooped up in the room long enough, Luffy glanced around at the Commanders and Captain (twisting his neck slightly to do so). Izou and Thatch grimaced at the unnatural muscle movement. Whitebeard raised an eyebrow at the runt's blank, though somehow oddly searching, look.

Turning back to face Ace, Lu released his older brother from his hug. Scooching forward to lean more directly against the freckled teen's front, he then hooked his arms around Ace's neck. Chin resting against Ace's chest (forcing the older to arch his neck a little awkwardly to look down and meet his brother's pleading gaze), features molding into a puppy-dog-pout, the dragon asked /( _RestlessTired Wannaleave Please?_ ) Can we go now, _Atce_? _Sávbó_? We're done, right? Don't wanna be here no more. /

Sabo, keeping his head largely facing the two brunets, let a small, gentle smile form on his lips. The calculating and coolly neutral blue eyes, however, were fixed firmly on the commanders and Captain; the blond enjoying the expressions ranging from exasperation and tolerance (Marco and Newgate) to confusion, mild horror, shock, and some stunned disbelief (Thatch, Izou and Vista). Living semi-isolated with Luffy had caused Sabo and Ace to become very open about their affection for each other, finding no embarrassment in showing their closeness. What probably amused Sabo the most, never failing to entertain him and (to a lesser extent) Ace, were the reactions of those _witnessing_ said displays of affection. Luffy's actions were always innocent in intent, the dragon merely conveying his love for his older brothers. It was Sabo and Ace, but mostly the blond, who would purposely be misleading about the whole thing just to get a rise out of others.

Upon seeing his younger sibling's smile, the victim of the dragon's pouty look rolled his eyes. /Fine. Waves, wrap this up so we can go chill for a bit before sneaking down to the galley/ Ace replied, pecking his youngest brother's nose—eliciting a happy giggle from Lu and a gaping mouth from Izou—then folding his arms tighter across the dragon's back while shooting a meaningful glance at Sabo.

Vista, now understanding where Izou's theory regarding the Trio stemmed from and also some of Bay's concerns, watched as Sabo let out a small puff of air. /Of course, leave all the work for me./

Ace shrugged. Luffy planted his face in the older brother's dip between chest and throat. Resting his chin on Lu's shaggy head, the fire-user smirked at Sabo as he said /Well… I _could_ do it, except things might end in another fight with my diplomatic know-how. /

The Fourth Commander was too busy staring at the three's interactions to notice that they came to a decision. His confused and whirling thoughts were pierced at the sound of a sigh coming from the top-hatted blond.

Because Ace made a valid point, Sabo briefly collected himself as he did another sweep of those in the room. Eyes coming to a halt when they reached Captain Whitebeard's impressive figure, he politely inquired, "Since we have attained a workable compromise and find both parties in agreement regarding what will occur when the ship docks in two days, can my brothers and I assume this meeting to be adjourned and are free to leave?"

Thatch looked from Sabo to Pops and back to Sabo. _'Wait, what about letting them use the deck and training rooms for sparring? They never said yes or no to Pops' offer._ ' About to ask that question aloud, the chef commander was cut off by his father's deep voice.

"Yes, brats, you can go if you want. Just remember to show your faces around the galley from now on." With an answering nod from Sabo, the boys rose and quickly left the room.

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, lots of talking. Sorry about that, but there's a good reason for it! I swear! What do you think of the whole discussion between Trio and Whitebeards? Tried writing it several times but this was best rendition. Damn Luffy hijacked the others and I wanted this to be _at least_ semi-serious. **

**Don't worry! Island will appear in next chapter! Plus Luffy and Bros shocking the shit outta the Whitebeards. Neehehehe! Gonna be good!**

 **Anywho… Review please (but not if you don't want to) and PM if you have questions. Also, it is fine to speculate what may happen, but if I confirm or deny anything DO NOT SHARE IT! Let everyone else keep guessing. Keeps them on their toes! ;-)**

 **Terms:**

 **Kýn'viil —[kyeen-vīl, 'vii' is pronounced like the 'vi' in 'vine' with the 'L' sound afterwards being short and quick (similar to the 'vile' but without the usual 'ul' sound you make when saying the word, if that helps)] Essentially is the position of 'beta' to a Flight's 'alpha'. If an Alpha's mate is part of the Flight ( _sídna_ ), this position is sometimes taken by them. Generally the second strongest member of a Drakkón Flight and is Second in Command to the Flight's _kýn'vráls_ (alpha).**

 **Luffy views Benn to be Shanks' _kýn'viil_ and Marco to be Whitebeard's as they are both second in the crews' hierarchy, having only their Captains possessing more authority and power than them.**


	13. First Tableside Meal!

**A/N: Sorry for the absurdly long break! Got dragged on a _second_ family vacation—where I felt my sanity slowly slipping away because there is a _damn good fucking reason_ we only have _ONE_ "family vacation" a year!—which lasted a month and had next to no internet access. Usually just none. Why? Bonding! Parents wanted us to bond as a "family" with "no distractions" since we were all heading separate ways in life. I think this is code for: "Mom is having a mid-life crisis (again) so go along with it or be drop-kicked off the Space Needle." Well, their wish came true! As a family, by the end we were merrily bonding…over the mutual desire to strangle each other. Let me repeat: there's a good reason we don't do more than _one_ damn "family vacation" per year.**

 **Not that I didn't appreciate where we went, that was great. Got to visit Paris, France, and see Notre Dame, some catacombs, a famous opera house, a show at Moulin Rouge (which was very cool and gave me some ideas), a super old book store that doubles as little library/lounge with awesome old and rare titles (shut up, I like books so leave me alone ;P ), got to go up the Eiffel Tower, visit the Palace of Versailles, see the Louvre (Mona Lisa _is not_ all it's cracked up to be people, just saying that now), did a boat tour using the huge canals running through part of the city (which I fell asleep on cuz I was tired as hell by then), saw some churches… **

**Then went to Barcelona, Spain, which is very _green_! They have so many parks and have lots of random art displayed everywhere. One building, I swear, looked like it was covered in weird black and white eye-stalks which resembled round security cameras. For a reference, draw a line then a circle at the end with almost half the front of the circle shaded so it looks like a waning moon. Then imagine the line and unshaded portion of the circle is white with the shaded being black. There is a building _covered_ in these things people! Saw the Sagrada Familia Church (I implore everyone, if you ever go to Barcelona, to go visit this place because it's _amazing_!) and some of Goudi's architectural works. Saw the Barcelona Zoo because we were told it's one of the best in Europe…don't bother going people. It was terrible! Exhibits for animals were small, some weren't labelled properly (in the reptile house, they called a large monitor lizard a Komodo dragon when it very obviously _wasn't_ ; not me being conceited, the actual dragons were a few exhibits over and the two looked nothing alike other than they were both large lizards), some animals were in poor health (physically and mentally), a few of the exhibits (like a couple of the monkey ones) had mice and some rats running around in them (not just one or two mice, I'm talking about 20 to 30 casually scampering around)… Just not impressed _at all_ with the whole thing. So yeah, don't give the zoo your money if you go to Barcelona people.**

 **After that, we ended our vacation in Nice, France ("Nice" pronounced like "niece"). Nice little city (though way bigger than I thought it was at first) with great swimming beaches. They're rocky, didn't find one with sand that wasn't brought in to be used for a beach-side volleyball court, but the rocks are nice and smooth and not difficult to traverse. Would still recommend swimming shoes for those not used of rocky beaches though. Best part of Nice has to be the Old District! Lots of little shops, restaurants, ice cream parlors, patisseries, a big grocer's market in the mornings… Just an awesome part of the city. I also recommend trying cactus sorbet! Is nice and refreshing, like mint, but without that horrible mint-taste (if that makes sense). Hibiscus is also a really nice flavor, kinda tastes like it smells but in a good way.**

 **So, when I wasn't out touring the cities (basically an all-day, everyday thing that my damn foot _was not happy about_ ), I was eating this yellow melon that tasted like cantaloupe and honeydew had a baby and writing chapters/ideas for this story. Good news: got lots of writing done. Bad news: there's _a lot_ of writing. Have no Beta to help with editing and stuff (previous offers fell through) so I'm looking for one again. In the meantime, going through notes/ideas and organizing them into chapters while going back over previously written chapters and typing them up as I edit them. You have no idea how long this chapter was on damn paper (~TAT~ because part of no internet access means no iPads to access said internet). Tried to steal time on dad's laptop until I discovered it was his work laptop. Ironclad rule is that dad's work-laptop is for company purposes _only_.**

 **Doesn't help that this chapter took so long to post because I also got swamped with work upon getting back. Good news there, got a promotion. Bad news: less free time. Also have doctor visits that were scheduled months ago or even last year (for certain reasons, I have required annual check-ups with a few doctors). A couple of these are geared toward the other foot surgery I will be having in a couple weeks. Yay "\ -_- /", so excited. Will also get the stupid screws taken of my other foot from the previous surgery at that time too. T_T So excited.**

 **So congratulations! Get an extra-long frickin' chapter (longest to-date) for being such patient angels! This is after I've cut stuff out too. Can't say much happens, although some really does. Sorry about the promise of an island not coming true in this chapter but it will be in the opening of the next! Guaranteed! Will probably come back to edit this thing into a more manageable size later, but just wanted to give you folks something already after holding out. So ta-daaa~!**

 **Also, something fun is gonna happen in a couple chapters and I need to know ahead of time what you guys prefer. Have a few different scenarios mapped out, I just want you to pick one or two that I should use.**

 **1)** **Dolls (human-shaped ones) —Why? Cuz they're creepier than all hell to me. Worse than clowns. Have never liked them and would set any Barbie or person-like doll I got on fire via fireworks. It's amazing how high some of them will go.**

 **2)** **Pink clothes/fabrics/streamers/ribbons/etc (maybe or maybe not with pretty sparkles) —Why? Pink is one of the most obnoxious colors in the world to me. Unless it is something _naturally_ pink (rose quartz, sweet peas, etc.) I can't stand it. Not to say it isn't a good color or dissing people who love and enjoy things pink. Really don't like it because my favorite color is blue (dark, light, sparkly, faded, bold; anything shade of blue, really) which I was told constantly all through preschool to second grade wasn't possible because I was a damn girl. Family didn't care (though mom had an incessant need to make me and my siblings wear matching outfits; many being pink but in different shades for each of us, with mine being a dark and dusky shade). But teachers and other students threw out lines and reasons why I couldn't possibly favor blue over pink, the core concept being that blue was for boys and pink for girls (btw, also told that red was a boy's color when I mentioned that was my next favorite as black doesn't count). So yeah, am not a fan of the color 'pink'.**

 **3)** **Squid/octopus (in a color of your choosing)—Why? Because my family knows I hate eating them. They don't taste good to me. So one of my darling little sisters got me a seafood risotto that had been made using squid ink and only featured octopus and squid meat in it. Was fine until I ate the bits of meat and gagged. We were in our rented flat and I felt perfectly justified in shoving the pasta in their face when they laughed. She doesn't like squid ink dishes and my parents forced her to eat every bite. Went back later and got the same thing except it had shrimp, clams, and fish in it. Tasted awesome! (Surprisingly, I found out I like cuttlefish while in Barcelona. The other two still taste nasty, but I've eaten several variations of cuttlefish, except raw, and have loved it. Good luck figuring the logic behind that out because I still haven't.)**

 **4)** **Sparkle Bombs (maybe with chalk powder included for extra dazzle and coloring effect)—Why? They're pretty and fun for revenge! Or because you're bored and want to see something explode in pretty, glittery splendor. The chalk powder idea comes because I really wanna go paintballing but can't right now. To get over this, invited a some friends over and, while ingesting massive amounts of Mountain Dew, we spent several hours making sparkle and confetti bombs then detonated them in the yard. Some went off more quietly than others depending on how they were built; most of mine just needed to be tossed instead of lit. Hence, the "bored" reason mentioned above.**

 **5)** **Bird Seed —I know it doesn't sound like much but, trust me, it can go places. I dedicate this idea to a scene I witnessed outside Notre Dame while waiting in line to go in.**

 **6)** **"Karl, King of Ducks! "—For those of you who haven't read this story: please do immediately! My best friend, who is a hunter, is going to dress up as Karl for Halloween. She will have a crown (from Burger King), a scepter (dollar store), cape (bed sheet cut in half), and a name tag reading "My Name Is: KARL" on her shirt. A string, which she'll eventually tie to a belt loop or something, will pull a line of decoy ducks that she'll mount on rollers (they have several and she's still deciding on the amount to use). She plans to make little capes for each one that says "Royal Escort". I called her a genius.**

 **Anyway, I'll leave the voting up to you. Either place your vote in a review or PM and I'll tally them up as they come in. Sorry for the long ass A/N and the crappy chapter title, but honestly had not better idea of what to call it. Also, will be doing some edits to previous chapters. Will let you know which have been changed and by how much so you can decide whether to go back and read them or not.**

 **As this chapter was beyond being ridiculously long, I split it into two. Still good-sized chapter, but no longer the 50K it _was_. You have no idea how many notebook pages that was. And I had to _type_ it all up once I got back which took fucking _forever_ because my handwriting is only two levels above being considered chicken-scratch. I know of only two ( _maybe_ three) people who have worse handwriting than me. One of them makes 'chicken-scratch' look damn elegant in comparison. So yes, typing up the _way too many_ pages of handwritten words took a ton of time. That's not including going back and editing (some of which I still have to do).**

 **On another note, again I mention that I am in the market for a Beta reader.**

 **Disclaimers: show/manga and their plots/characters/etc. belong to them. Toodles!**

* * *

 **Chapter 13: First Tableside Meal! Namur Joins the Bandwagon?**

* * *

Once the main dinner rush had ended, the galley emptying of virtually everyone save Vista, Izou, Thatch and Marco, the First Division Commander went to go find the Troublesome Trio. A nice flight had lifted some of the stress he'd been feeling and greatly improved his mood. The peaceful hour in the sky also provided Marco a chance to reflect more objectively on the time since the ASL Trio came aboard.

Ace had gradually become less antagonistic towards the crew at large. He was no longer lighting everyone that got within fifteen-feet of him on fire and could be seen occasionally smiling or grinning at something someone other than his brothers said. Really, the only reason the younger fire-user lit a person up recently was because they were: A) Thatch, trying to proactively recruit the kid by calling him either "little bro" or "soon-to-be-little-brother"; B) someone (again, usually Thatch) told Ace he should join and become one of Pops' sons (unless the person telling Ace this _was_ Pops, in which case Ace would attack the captain and end up lodged in a wall or sprawled out somewhere); C) some idiot badmouthed Luffy, wherein Sabo would also take part in the resulting ass-kicking or run damage control on Luffy (which, inevitably, still ended with the offender's ass getting handed to them by both older brothers); D) it was one of said younger brothers and the three were "playing a game" (Luffy's words). Marco even discovered that Ace possessed _manners_ when one of the phoenix's division told him about the boys respectfully thanking them for looking after a pillow belonging to Luffy. If he'd known that before the surprising display of gratitude (which hadn't been _at all_ faked) the three showed Izou then the First wouldn't have been so dumbfounded by the action.

 _'Can't see the kid being like that normally. Wonder where Ace learned them from yoi…_ '

* * *

Sabo sneezed hard into his towel.

Ace glanced over at his brother as he dried Lu's hair, ignoring the younger's fussing and proclamations that he "could do it himself".

/( _Concern_ ) You okay, Waves? Not getting sick are you?/ The blond shook his head and continued drying himself off.

Ace huffed at the silent treatment. He would've normally dried both his siblings off quickly using his fire, but Sabo (silently) declined and Luffy deserved the somewhat rough handling. Stefan got lucky in that the dog was able to get away faster than the dragon, who'd been too busy laughing to notice a very wet and slimy Ace lunging at him.

"It is _just_ a coat, Waves. You have more just like it…or pretty close to it," the freckled teen offered moodily over Luffy's increasing protests.

"A coat that used to be _clean_ and _whole_ until you _ripped it_ ," came the irritated reply. Putting on a long-sleeved white shirt, Sabo caught Ace snippily mouthing his words as the older raven toweled off the struggling younger one. "It was also my _last_ clean coat. You and Light also don't have many clean clothes left—" Ace and Luffy groaned long-sufferingly hearing that.

Laundry duty _was not_ a well-liked activity by any stretch of the imagination for those two. Especially since they always (or pretty damn close to always) got yelled at by Sabo in the end. Ace is quick to blame his infamous "D Luck" for what happens whenever he's on laundry duty. Both Sabo and Ace aren't sure what's responsible for Luffy's laundry duty troubles; either the same "D Luck" or the dragon's own special brand of luck, but can agree that he isn't to go unsupervised ever again. Ever. There's only so many times they can allow themselves to admit to losing their brother in a sea of sudsy bubbles (they _still_ haven't a damn clue how Lu ever manages that feat).

* * *

Marco kept his pace casual as his musings left the subject of Ace in favor of drifting towards the one of Sabo. That teen even _he_ had trouble reading. Where Ace is pretty upfront about his thoughts and emotions, Sabo is the opposite in his near-impassiveness. The phoenix isn't sure how much of what they saw of Sabo is an act versus the boy's true self.

The blond teen is more amiable than his older sibling when interacting with others, even more so when recently he began actively engaging in conversation with those talking with Luffy. Sabo still came off as distant and detached in Marco's opinion though. Like the kid is taking his time carefully scrutinizing what happened around him before deciding upon a course of action. Hearing Zack talk of how Sabo is the "planner" and designated tactician of the Trio, the First Commander wonders if his family's numerous advances into the Trio's personal lives and space are met with a pre-planned setup. Which, in turn, begs the question: how much of _anything_ they've been presented with by the Trio, thus far, is real?

Shaking his head, Marco sets that train of unwanted thought to the side and opts to think of more positive discoveries.

Like how, thanks to the blond Whitebeard's excellent hearing and observational skills, he's fairly certain that Sabo's overly, and severely frustrating, polite disposition is little more than a mask. Not that Marco doesn't doubt the blond teen to _not_ be a polite individual; Sabo's probably the politest of the three brothers. But the First has noticed that, when alone, Sabo is much curter and up front when speaking with Ace and Luffy. The formality to the ex-captain's speech is almost nonexistent and he talks more akin to how Ace does. Thanks to this, Marco has been able to deduce when Sabo is either open to a line of conversation or wishes for the person speaking to back away. Sharing this knowledge with Thatch and Pops (then later Vista and Izou) and acting on it yielded the pleasing result of Sabo becoming less formal and uptight around them.

Sabo's act and also his speech pattern had Marco mulling over the day's meeting with the Trio. Sabo had been more laidback than usual, though the commander hadn't missed the lines of tension through the younger blond's form. Sabo had even broken his established method of address in regards to members of the Whitebeard Pirates to call Izou "Mr. Izou" as opposed to the usual "Mr. Sixteenth". Is the change (should it stick) really due to the First Commander's brother's treatment of Luffy's pillow? That couldn't be the _only_ reason, right?

"It's Sabo so there _must_ be more to it, yoi," the Phoenix-zoan mumbled.

* * *

Sabo sneezed. Again.

Ace eyed him from his seat on the small stool. "You _sure_ you're not getting sick? That's twice in only a few minutes." To himself, he muttered, "I knew I should've just dried you off." The blond rolled his eyes and kept combing his wet hair.

"I am not sick, you worry-wart. You can't _get_ sick from being a little damp for a handful of minutes unless you're _outside_ in a _snowstorm_ or something." Hearing his older brother grumble and feeling a mild spark of amusement stemming from Lu, Sabo added, "Thanks to your _heated disposition_ , Sun, it's also really warm and kind of balmy in here. Rather opposite a chilly snowstorm, right?"

Luffy laughed at Ace's sulky pout and silent whispers of denial to Sabo's claim of the older raven being a "worry-wart". Finished with brushing the fire-user's long hair—the tresses were now creeping passed the tops of Ace's shoulders on the sides and several inches down his spine in the back—Luffy bounced around to sit in front of his brother and handed him the comb to get his own mussy, damp locks dealt with. Although Luffy couldn't help the near-constant fidgeting, he at least kept his head somewhat still and Ace was grateful for even that small favor.

Taking the comb, Ace got to work. Lu didn't really need the brushing as his soft hair rarely got tangled like Ace and Sabo's did. The fact it fell straight as it dried also helped the no-tangle factor (lucky little bastard). But the older brothers know grooming is a method of bonding and reaffirming closeness with _sídna_ and family. Therefor some of their little brother's restlessness would be eased by the action. Ace grinned knowing Sabo, although he'd just finished brushing his golden hair—almost as long as Ace's now that he's really looking at it—and currently looking for something amongst the various little cabinets in the bathroom, would come over to get it re-combed by Lu.

Sure enough, once Sabo located a small tie to get some of the hair out of his way later while it dried, he ambled over with a second comb. Dropping both objects in the dragon's lap, he sat down and tipped his head back so Lu could get the crown of his head better.

Remembering a Human superstition about sneezing, Luffy giggled.

"What, Lu?" the older pair asked.

"Shishishi… Ne, didn't you guys say you sneeze when somebody talks about you?" Ace and Sabo chuckled lightly.

"Who do you think it is?" The freckled teen shuddered from the unlikeable thought Sabo's question brought forth.

"Hope it's not shitty Gramps…"

Luffy and Sabo stilled. A simultaneous shiver of fear rippled through the three suddenly pale teens.

"N-nah. We lost him back in Paradise. The shitty, old geezer doesn't even know we made it passed Fishman Island, I bet."

"So scary Grandpa doesn't know we're here. Right?"

"Yep. The crazy geezer is clueless," Ace and Sabo chimed with forced bravado.

Confirming the idea to be the likely (supremely hopeful) truth, the Trio began regaining some of their color. Ace went back to combing Lu's head and the dragon did the same for Sabo.

 _'I doubt he would even think to look for us on Captain Whitebeard's ship anyway_ ,' Sabo silently thought (more like prayed).

* * *

Marco stopped walking as something else hit him. Luffy had called Izou "Iz-Iz". Not some weird nickname (he won't ever tell Izou, but Marco's heard the straw-hatted brat call his brother things like "Lady-Man" or "Pretty Dress Man" several times) or butchered version of one's name. No, the shrimp had called the Division Commander by a shortened version of his actual name.

 _'Maybe it's a one-time thing?'_ Marco can only hope as much, since he's been trying to get the little shrimp to stop calling him things like "Pineapple-Head", "Pineapple-Turkey", or the rarer "Mango". Feeling his features dip into a scowl, he brushed aside the aggravating thought of Luffy-derived nicknames and resumed his search.

Unfortunately, Marco's musings lumbered on to the subject of the little oddball pirate. In terms of being able to read the little brat, the commander finds the task to be almost as hard as trying to read Sabo. Perhaps even worse. Luffy is a bundle of energy that is very open about what he's feeling like his older brother, Ace, but Marco feels the brat is still hiding and putting up a front like Sabo. The kid is an enigma and, as much as Marco admittedly likes the cheeky little Strawhat, he isn't sure what to make of adding the kid into their family.

Something about Luffy agitates his Phoenix; granted, the sensation isn't as strong as it was in the very beginning, but it's still very much present. Namur's reaction and statements about the kid assure Marco that it isn't just him who senses something's off with the little pirate. Pops had even told him that the man felt a similar feeling niggling at him but it had rapidly faded, only flaring slightly into the captain's conscious awareness when the brat would get extremely upset. Hell, out of everyone the First was probably the _most_ surprised that one day when he and his family first saw Luffy running around with Stefan.

Marco had seen the dog's initial meet and greet with Strawhat: an intense wariness of the boy and a snapping snarl that warned the small teen to stay away from the hound. The Zoan had been breathlessly thankful that the brat took the warning and backed off, for he'd worried that Stefan might bite Luffy otherwise. The phoenix debated telling his adoptive father about the two's encounter, eventually conceding to the necessity of doing so as Stefan only acted like that towards things the beast perceived as a viable threat to Pops. The captain, since only those with animalistic natures were reacting to Luffy this way, told Marco to keep an eye on the boy while speculating that it might have something to do with the brat's supposed Zoan-based Devil Fruit. It had made both men extremely curious as to what about the young pirate could do that made Stefan so damn wary of him.

This brings another headache into the equation. Despite Marco's, Haruta's, Thatch's, Vista's, Izou's, and even _Pops_ ', best efforts they are no closer to figuring out Luffy's Devil Fruit. The squirmy brat has been aggravatingly adept at keeping the Fruit a secret. Perusing the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia (which Pops essentially lets Marco keep to avoid further disruptions in the name of obtaining the book from the captain's room) helps very little in the commanders' quest because Luffy hasn't directly stated what abilities are the work of his Fruit. Marco is assuming that the stretchiness and lack of rigidity of the brat's skeletal structure are due to the mystery Fruit. Plus some of the odd smell and the way Luffy's skin felt when he held the struggling wild child. But there are very few possible matches in the encyclopedia and he inevitably ends up listening to Haruta pining for a more complete work of known Devil Fruits being available to them.

Marco's brought out of his head when he almost walks pass the corridor he needs to reach the stairs to the deck. It's also here that he pauses again as an idea comes to mind.

 _'They might not be top-side yoi._ ' He doesn't want to search the whole ship for the three teens, as that could take hours he doesn't have the luxury of wasting. As long as the Trio aren't actively suppressing their presence— _'Which reminds me, I need to ask them about that before we get to Monroes Island._ '—it isn't too difficult for the commanders to find them using Observation Haki. If they are, then basically only Marco or Pops has a chance of locating them.

Fortunately, the First Commander is able to easily sense the three young pirates near the Commanders' Quarters. Trying to keep a headache from forming, courtesy of his previous lines of thinking (he was so right that the Trio would be the cause of many future headaches), Marco pondered where Thatch might've hidden that damned pineapple the Troublesome Trio drew on. He needed to destroy that _thing_! At the very least, so that Marco could get the pompadoured "buffoon" (as Izou would say) to stop parading the detestable object around while looking some proud parent and smugly shouting that the crew "finally has some brothers who know how to have fun".

The commander bristles when he recalls Thatch, "Mango the Pineapple" held up high like the idiot chef was presenting something miraculous, joyously exclaiming to a galley filled with siblings eating lunch: _"Guys! Thanks to our new soon-to-be-brothers, we have finally located Marco's long lost twin! Mango the Pineapple!"_

 _'On second thought, instead of destroying the abominable fruit I'll shove it down the idiot's throat then toss him in the damn sea, yoi!'_

Yes. That plan was _much_ more sensible than mindlessly tearing the fruit to pieces with his talons.

A crewmember about to walk pass Marco stopped mid-stride, gulped, then made a speedy about-turn down a different corridor. The Phoenix-zoan didn't notice the rather bloodthirsty, dark aura being emitted briefly by himself nor the division member's suddenly pale complexion and subsequent hasty retreat.

* * *

Curiel, Jozu and Fossa stared at the commanders' communal bathroom door. Muffled curses and thumps echoed from the room, distorted by the tiled area inside and wooden door through which they came.

"You really think they're not brothers, like Izou says?" Curiel questioned, suppressing a startled flinch at the sound of slightly louder thunk followed by an impressive round of curses.

Jerking a thumb at the door, which suddenly vibrated as something (likely one of the teens in question) was knocked into it, Fossa drawled, "Tha' sounds like a three-way brawl, no' some brats doin' somethin' they shouldn' be. They said they're brothers and we _know_ from experience tha' brothers tend ta fight when 'moody'."

"How much you wanna bet the imp started it?" Jozu thought it a pretty safe bet considering most of the previous squabbles he'd witnessed in the last couple days were started, in some way or another, by the straw hat wearing imp. He could use the money, too, since he'd lost a fair amount of beri to Bay and Kingdew the night before playing Poker.

Fossa eyed the bathroom door as another, younger voice began cursing and calling out ridiculous names. An eyebrow rose when what the Fifteenth Commander presumed to be two bodies collided with the wall to the side of the entrance. Thinking back to this morning's ruckus, he smirked and replied, "100 beris on the fire-starter."

"Guess that means I get the blond pipe-wielder then," Curiel muttered. "I just hope they didn't destroy the showering area _too badly_. I'd like to be somewhat clean before turning in for the night." Jozu rolled his eyes.

"You wouldn' need ta if you stopped messin' with those over-powered toys o' yours for more than a few hours," Fossa commented, nodding at the grease splotches he spied on his adopted sibling's hands and face.

The gunner shrugged. He likes tinkering with his guns and upgrading them to be more powerful. The Tenth Commander is very proud of his babies and they deserve only the best treatment he could offer. Anyone who has something negative to say about them, besides his family, would become a test subject of the latest upgrade. Truthfully, only the commanders or Pops (or Bay) are able to get away with calling Curiel's prized guns 'toys'. Everyone else went swimming, some more permanently than others.

"What are you doing, yoi? You're blocking the corridor." Jozu looked down over his shoulder and spied Marco strolling up to them. Curiel and Fossa bent to the side to peek around the large commander, watching as the blond came to a stop a few steps from the group.

The Paramecia Fruit-user jerked a thumb at the door. "Come to grab the imp and brats before they wreck the place more?" His lip twitched in mild amusement when Marco's response was pinching the bridge of his nose and sighing in exasperation.

Both Curiel and Fossa grinned at their older brother's "suffering". All three were more and more happy about the fact _they_ hadn't been (officially or unofficially) delegated as the Temperamental Trio's babysitters.

Jozu actively tried to avoid spending too much time near the Trio. It was aggravating to hear that ridiculously peppy voice of the imp blaring the undesirable nickname "Sparkles" whenever he was spotted. The equally aggravating smirks that crawled onto the blond liar's and hothead's faces at the name also rubbed him the wrong way; along with the liar's faux cheery call of "Mr. Sparkles", "Mr. Glitter", or "Commander Sparkles" that echoed after the imp. The Third Commander had foregone trying to get the imp to pronounce his name correctly when the only response was the butchered version of it (consequently sending the other two brothers into fits of chuckles and sniggering every time it was used). He'd asked Kingdew and Jiru, two of the resident bookworms on the ship not including Marco, if the butchered version was an actual word but neither had ever heard of it.

Fossa is often busy in the workshops or training room so he doesn't run into the Trio very much at all (which he is very thankful for). While he often has a cigar in his mouth, he is forbidden from lighting it while inside the ship (with the exception of his room as long as the window is open) so his encounters were basically restricted to the times he ventured to the deck for a smoke. Apparently, none of the Trio liked the smell of his cigars and therefore never really approached him. The commander has, however, caught snippets of the runt calling him "Stinky Mustache" or "Stinky-Smoke Guy". Once he even overheard Strawhat saying that he "smells worse than Scary Gramps". He went to turn and question the brat about the comment but was disappointed to find they'd already left. Fossa only told Pops about the mention of the three possibly still having family somewhere.

Curiel spent most of the time either up in the mainmast's crow's nest, tinkering with his various modified guns or special bazookas, loitering in one of the training rooms, or in the Communications Room. His only real interactions with the Trio include the times he was startled by the appearance of the loud shrimp's head grinning at him over the half-wall of the crow's nest opposite him (and the brat is so _damn lucky_ he didn't get shot out of reflex) or witnessing the three's shenanigans on the main deck. The gunner did secretly enjoy watching some of his family get jumpy over the supposed ghost sightings, especially the more superstitious and paranoid members of the crew (Thatch and his dramatics particularly funny to watch). Curiel willingly acknowledges that he is included in that group, sure, but is nowhere _near as bad_ as others on the ship; he just has a healthy wariness of anything spirit-related or otherworldly. And what pirate, in his humble opinion, wasn't at least _a little_ superstitious?

The door to the bathroom (their only barrier against the likely chaos hidden inside) shuddered as a more solid _thunk_ sounded from the impact, refocusing the four commanders' gaze onto the section of wood. More muffled cursing and strained grunts echoed from the room. Seeing Marco's face slide into an expression of both resignation and passive boredom the other three shifted to the other side of the door. Out of the way but prepared (kind of) for whatever sight might greet them.

Since all doors on the _Moby Dick_ swung into the room and not the hallway (for safety reasons), the First Commander had to wait for the weight against the door to move before opening it. The other commanders watched as Marco twisted the knob and pushed the wooden barrier, only opening it partway and letting the clearer noises of what probably constituted a struggle into the corridor. A quick check inside and the original group of curious pirates felt a spike of curiosity rise up when Marco's shoulders drooped (Curiel bet it to be either relief or reluctant acceptance of whatever scene met him) and the man swung the door all the way open. When their brother did nothing more than fold his arms and stare inside, Fossa, Curiel and Jozu moved to lean in and see what was going on.

Curiel's first concern had been the showering area which, he noted with a sigh of relief, was completely unharmed from what he could see. Jozu was surprised to see no major structural damage had occurred, yet, aside from a few dents here and there in the wooden floor and the wall separating bathroom from hallway. Then, they turned their eyes to what had Marco's undivided attention and is the source of the commotion they'd been listening to.

To Fossa, it looked like the Trio were in a three-way wrestling match, and a tied one to boot. The brats were rolling around on the floor in a tangled pile of limbs, with one of them getting shunted away every few seconds before going back into the fray. At first, Curiel was sure the growls were coming from the runt alone until Sabo, after getting bucked off Ace's back, let out a growl of his own as he dove on top of Strawhat (who'd flipped the two over so now _he_ was sitting on Ace's stomach and trying to bite the teen's arm). Luffy and Ace growled at the blond's return, the youngest getting knocked over and pinned under Sabo on top the fire-user's legs but still managing to keep his own locked around Ace's middle. The older raven head started cursing Sabo as he began trying to pry his one arm loose from the leg-lock the blond had put it in after pinning Luffy, who at some point successfully latched onto Sabo's wrist via his mouth and was fighting (and growling) to keep the hold against the other's struggles.

Jozu stared as the little imp made a seemingly impossible twist out from under Sabo when Ace tried to roll them over a few seconds later. Relinquishing both his holds, Luffy tried to slip over Sabo in a probable bid to pin both of the older teens beneath him. The runt planted himself on the blond's back, legs snaking around both midsections below him, with one arm fending off Sabo's attempts to grab him and the other trying to hit Ace. He wasn't having much success since the fire-teen opted to ignore the trapped arm and now focused on deflecting Luffy's attacks. This only lasted a handful of seconds before Sabo, in rapid succession, smoothly let go of Ace's arm, brought his hands to brace against Ace's thighs (just above the knees), then shoved himself up to kneel straddling Ace's lower ribs. With a surprised yelp, Luffy flew forward over his older brother's head, hitting the floor then tumbling into a stool a couple yards away.

Ace grunted at the impact of Sabo landing on him but gave the other teen no time to grab him again. As soon as Luffy went sailing, Curiel saw the older raven grin darkly right as he planted his feet against the floor and used them to sharply buck his lower body up. Sabo tried to keep his seat during the jarring motion however Ace used the other's moment of imbalance to shove him off, the blond smacking the floor sprawled face-down with a surprised "Oomph". He cursed when Ace quickly leaped over onto his back, pinning him to the ground, and grabbed his legs to keep Sabo from trying to kick the raven. A low, frustrated-sounding growl came from off to the side. The three commanders nearly startled when Luffy came out of nowhere and barreled into Ace, knocking the larger brat off Sabo in the process. The latter re-entered the wrestling match with his darker-haired brothers with a snarl on his lips and revenge dancing in his blue eyes.

Marco, Curiel, Fossa and Jozu continued watching the brawling/wrestling Trio for a solid couple of minutes longer, stuck in a dazed mixture of shock, surprise, disbelief and humorous bewilderment. All the while absently listening to the three brothers' nonstop uttering of incomprehensible words (probably more cursing, the crew found the brats to be very creative in that department) combined with more audible swearing and growling. The three moved and shifted about erratically, making it a little difficult to tell Ace and Luffy apart at times since their shirts were of the same color.

"So wha' did ya need these three for again?" Fossa somewhat quietly asked.

His brother sighed before reaching over to rap his knuckles sharply against the wall next to him and saying, "Yoi!"

* * *

All three brothers halted their movements simultaneously at the interruption and silence descended upon the amassed group. Marco found it kind of funny that the three had frozen at his voice, though he didn't let on to that.

Ace sat on Sabo's stomach, one hand holding onto the leg that had been kneeing him in the back and the other gripping the wrist of the hand curled into the collar of his unbuttoned, dark orange shirt. The blond teen had one leg bent uncomfortably slightly under and to the side of him and his opposite arm busy trying to pry loose from one of Lu's hands. The Human-shaped dragon was stuck under Sabo with one arm pinned between his chest and his brother's back, mouth still firmly attached to the area midway between right shoulder and the crook of Sabo's neck. His teeth weren't breaking skin (he always tried to be careful about that) but all three knew there would be definite bruising.

Marco raised an eyebrow when the teens, as one, turned to look at him and the other three commanders and blinking owlishly twice as they registered their impromptu audience. Seeing how the Trio started to grow tense at finding the room's only exit blocked by the much larger pirates, the First Commander subtly motioned for his siblings to back away and wait down the hall. They obliged after another cursory glance around the room and at the silent, stiff teens.

Ace, Sabo and Luffy relaxed some as they quietly watched the other three commanders leave. The Humans didn't go too far away, but the brothers no longer felt as if they were being penned in. Luffy let go of Sabo's shoulder to better look at Pineapple-Head, still feeling a little high on adrenaline from the roughhousing. Ace discreetly checked his littlest brother's eyes as he let go of Sabo's leg, more tension easing when he saw they were just a dark brown. Sabo noticed the additional laxness of his older sibling's muscles and let some of his own worry go, dropping his hand from Ace's shirt as he did.

Debating whether to stay standing in the doorway or head into the room fully, the Zoan commander flicked his eyes over to where Curiel, Jozu and Fossa stood. Coming to a decision, and hoping it wasn't the wrong one, he gave his adopted siblings a look that told them to stay where they were then turned his eyes back onto the Trio before casually walking forward.

The brothers stiffened when they saw the First Commander come in, gaze centered on their forms. Sabo felt Lu grow agitated in his heightened state, instincts (harder to fight off than usual right now) telling the dragon a potential threat/danger was encroaching on his space. Ace and Sabo let out a small breath of relief when Marco took another set of steps before turning to lean against the half-wall separating the tiled area of the sitting showers (located on the barrier's other side) from the bathroom's entryway (where the cabinets holding the commanders' personal effects were also located). The Phoenix-zoan purposely relaxed his bearing even more and was gratified to see most of the caution and wariness still present in the three's eyes fade away.

Ace slid off his middle brother to sit beside the blond, feet planted on the other side of Sabo's hips so Ace's legs bent over the younger. Sabo sat up enough to let Lu get his arm free and then laid back down on top of the dragon. With the door open all of the warm, slightly humid air rapidly fled the room and left Sabo feeling a little chilled thanks to his still damp hair (now all messed up thanks to their short-lived scuffle); Luffy's body ran warmer than Humans and his rubbery-ness made for a good, if unconventional, cushion. Both brunets answered their sibling's silent plea, Lu lifting his arms to wrap them in a light hold over Sabo's front, just under his collar bone, and Ace calling up a thin rope of flame to curl around the blond.

Marco observed the brothers in silence, taking in the domestic actions that were at complete odds with the behavior they displayed not even five minutes ago. He was grateful that his apology earlier to Luffy had granted him the renewed chance to get close to the Trio again—or so he assumed, as the kid hadn't tugged the older two off to parts unknown yet. Ace glanced up at the open door, Marco's blues doing the same when he saw the teen's shift in focus. Perhaps he should've closed the thing to keep the warm air in? The commander saw Sabo stifle a shiver at the sudden shift in temperature when the kid's adrenaline began to ebb.

 _'But then they might've felt trapped with me in here with them yoi._ '

It wasn't lost on him that, aside from that very first morning and then that very day's meeting with Pops, none of the teens had allowed one of the Whitebeard crew to be in an enclosed space with them. Sure, he'd met either Sabo or Ace in a corridor now and then. And Vista had taken Sabo down to view the orlop level of the ship. But those spots had always held avenues of escape for the teens, whereas the majority of rooms generally only had one way in or out (with a few exceptions like a couple of the larger training or workshop rooms, the galley and the kitchen).

Ace took a final look at the doorway, not liking that it being open contributed to his brother feeling cold but his suspicious nature arguing against the act of asking Lu to reach over and close it, before turning to look up at the tall pirate. Leaning forward to fold his arms across the top of his knees, he asked, "Need something?"

Broken from his musing, Marco took in the slightly guarded tone and wary grey eyes. Sky-blues roved over the teens, noticing how Ace's muscles subtly tensed at the scrutiny. Sabo had his eyes closed but also appeared a touch stiffer like he'd sensed the shift in Ace. Marco didn't doubt the possibility of that being true, these three were very aware of each other. Luffy, surprisingly, was the most unguarded of the brothers. The boy was very relaxed, dark eyes alternating between watching him and closing as he nuzzled his brother's light-gold hair. A light smile tugged at Sabo's face as he felt the small vibrations of a soundless thrum emanating from Lu's chest.

"You're late for dinner, yoi," he replied casually. "I came to find you." Marco's gaze flickered about the room, thankful that the damage was superficial and would be easy to fix.

Luffy's stomach let out a loud growl at the mention of food. /( _Hungry Food?_ )/

Sabo and Ace chuckled quietly, partly amused and partly sheepish. The First Commander watched Ace reach over to ruffle the youngest's mussed hair, prompting the smaller pirate to scowl and let out an unhappy sound that was a cross between a growl and whine. Spotting his own personal cabinet nearby, Marco crossed over to it. The three watched in interest as the man opened the cabinet door and rifled through the cubby's contents, closing the door once he seemed to find the object of his search. Walking back over to the teens, hiding a frown at the returned tension in Sabo and Ace and the mild wariness in Strawhat's searching eyes, he stopped a few feet short of them before holding out his hand. He smirked, openly enjoying the blank looks the older two were aiming at the brush in his hand.

"Unless you don't mind the caught-in-a-windstorm-look..." Ace glanced at his younger brothers, noting the blond commander's comment to be a fair assessment of their appearance.

Sabo's golden hair, becoming curly as it dried, went every which-way with some flopped against the natural parting it usually followed. Knots and snarls, which would be a pain-and-a-half to deal with if left alone, were everywhere. A part of his brother's right bangs were tangled with the left, drawing them over the scarring of Sabo's left eye that had lately been hidden behind the bangs' greater length. Sabo was looking him over too and probably finding Ace's hair to be a mirror of his own. Luffy, with his shorter tresses, was likely the best off even though bits were pointing out at random angles.

Marco took the opportunity to get a better look at the boys. Thanks to his new position he could see the 'ASL' tattoo on Ace's chest due to the teen's shirt hanging off his shoulder, though it was obscured by how Ace was leaning against his legs. Glancing down at Sabo, he caught the edges of another tattoo in the same spot as Ace's peeking out from under the loose cream-colored shirt. His gaze sharpened when he also spotted what looked like some sort of large scar curling across the younger blond's chest.

Luffy carefully watched the Human eyeing his brothers, knowing exactly when the older male saw the traces of scarring left by that hated _raishka liis'drak_. Tearing his mind away from those thoughts so his brothers wouldn't sense his stirring resentment—which might cause them to think Pineapple-Head to be the source and the dragon didn't want that—Lu shifted his attention to the proffered comb.

Sabo felt his little brother nudge his head gently and at the same time his mind too. /Yeah, Lu?/

Ace, sensing Waves' focus turn from him to Lu, also sent a small bubble of question across their link.

/( _FirebirdFine NotEnemy AcceptYes?_ _Hungrywanttoeat_ )/

The mentioned commander raised in eyebrow in silent interest when Sabo lifted a hand to pat Strawhat on the head in response to the younger's nudging him. Something seemed to pass between the three in that moment because Ace gave sigh that spoke of annoyed reluctance while his grey eyes held obvious love and fondness when they opened and fixed on his brothers.

Turning his head to eye the taller pirate in front of them, still wary of the man but trusting Lu's judgement of him, Ace held up his hand. Marco, expecting to hear Ace speak at the gesture, was a little surprised when it was Sabo who asked, "Mind waiting a couple more minutes so we can make ourselves more presentable, Mr. First?" The Zoan nodded with a small grin.

"That's fine, yoi. I'll wait outside." He didn't want to push the brothers. While they were fine with his presence right then, Marco doubted the same would hold true as they cleaned themselves up.

On the way out he paused mid-reach for the doorknob. Marco didn't want to just shut them in the room. What if the three thought he was purposely closing them in and that he would be standing guard outside the room? It would be akin to confirming their suspicions of being nothing more than prisoners.

Ace saw the commander look at them over his shoulder, one hand almost touching the door's handle. He gave a slight nod, hoping he was correctly interpreting the older pirate's searching eyes. Without a word Marco left the room and closed the door behind him.

Luffy giggled at the puzzled expression on Ace's face and the contemplative one on Sabo's. He'd been discreetly monitoring the older Human's emotions and scent. The man had hints of fear intermingling with his normal scent and also traces of worry and caution emanating from his mind. Although he hadn't been expecting the sudden flurry emitted by the Commander as he left, Lu was pleasantly surprised at the other's thoughtfulness to include their opinion of whether to shut the door or not behind him.

The dragon was distracted as, now that he didn't have the flow of adrenalin running through him, that stupid itch started to resurface. He twitched in an aborted move to scratch his skin, stopped by the warning glare shot at him by both older brothers. Getting up to quickly redo their hair and right their clothing (Sabo's loose pants rather impressively twisted around him), Ace and Sabo kept an eye on their fidgety brother.

* * *

Vista and Izou were lightly chatting with each other as they waited for Marco to return with the Trio in tow. Thatch had gone back to the kitchen to whip up some extra food even before their eldest brother had left. Voices outside the giant doors leading to the hall had the two pausing their conversation, a small measure of delight filling them upon discovering one of the presences outside to be Marco.

The Phoenix-zoan was the first to enter, immediately shooting the two a stern and silent warning with his eyes, shortly followed by Sabo piggy-backing Luffy and Ace. The eldest of the Trio noticed Marco standing off to the side and giving him that odd, questioning look again. Without taking his own darker blues off the two commanders before them, Sabo answered his brother's silent query. Receiving a small nod from the older raven-hair had Marco pushing the door closed behind him before walking over to where his ship-brothers were.

The Fifth and Sixteenth Division Commanders exchanged glances, subtlely asking if the other had noticed the new changes between the four approaching pirates. Ace had been within three feet of Marco and Luffy hadn't kicked up a fuss over it! And they _know_ the littlest saw it because he'd stared at the two flame-users for several seconds before going back to looking around the room. As virtually everyone onboard the ship (who knew the kid) saw Luffy as the Trio's tentative baseline, Izou and Vista _really_ wanted to know what their brother had done to get the three to relax so much in his presence.

It was as Marco and the Trio were walking towards them that Izou, followed by Vista when they got closer, noticed something thanks to the elder pair of brothers' tied-back hair: the large scar on Sabo's face. Stopping a pace away with Ace on the blond's left, Izou's eyes widened as he hastily smothered a rising urge to gasp. Both swordsman and gunman now understand their eldest brother's earlier warning.

Sabo isn't as dark as Luffy and Ace, the teen's tan resting around perhaps four or five shades lighter than Ace's, but still the obviously old _burn scar_ stood out on his otherwise handsome face. From what they can see, the scarring stretches from around his left eye to back towards his ear (how far back they can't tell as yet) and down the left side of his neck to disappear under the cream loose shirt. The scarring itself, rather than being pink or some shade of peachy-red like most burn scars, is more of a tanned white. Not milky in its starkness on Sabo's features, but definitely not as tan as the unblemished skin. Vista is of the mind that such a detail has gone unnoticed because the blond's hair is so long and it always managed to cover the scarring.

It's been less than two minutes since the two commanders took stock of the burn and Izou is wondering if the reason Sabo always has a barrier or one of his siblings to his left is because the young blond experiences trouble seeing out of that eye. The kimono-wearer doesn't notice the minute tensing of thin arms looped around Sabo's front, too lost in his internal speculations, however Vista does.

Lifting his eyes from the scarring, he's met by the youngest of the Trio's piercing dark irises. Luffy has clearly been watching each of Vista and Izou's reactions, his brothers preoccupied with swiveling their focus about the mess hall still. There's a dare in that unwavering gaze for the Fifth Commander to make a comment about Sabo's scar, a look that showcases the topic to be a sensitive one.

Unaware of the charged look aimed at them, Izou flicks his chocolate eyes from the old burn to Ace. This time Marco (who'd been about to go see what the hell Thatch was doing) also becomes aware of Strawhat's tension as the near-black gaze narrows on Izou. Tucking his head to rest on his older brother's left shoulder, the side of his temple firmly against Sabo's ear and cheekbone, Luffy squeezes his arms while letting out a low, displeased growl. The noise draws Izou's ponderings to a swift halt as he registers the three guarded (and challenging) stares directed at him.

Marco shakes his head as his brother offers an immediate apology and asks the three where the wish to sit, saying that Thatch also offered them to eat in the kitchen of that's what they prefer. Sabo snorts and mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like "Lu wouldn't fit through the door" while Ace rubs the youngest's back in slow circles (stopping the low growl in time for a louder one from the kid's stomach to sound off).

With a roll of his eyes and a fondly exasperated huff from Sabo, Ace leads them to a table by the kitchen doors. Vista gives the Trio a look of confusion when Luffy lightly smacks the fire-teen's shoulder before the other can finish seating himself. The three commanders watch a heated stare-off between both raven-haired brothers as Luffy deftly maneuvers under Sabo's raised arm to sit in the blond's lap. Izou is fairly certain a solid, silent, minute passes before Ace finally gives an aggrieved sigh and resumes standing.

In open curiosity, Vista, Marco and Izou watch as the younger fire-user summoned a fist-sized ball of blue fire. With Ace turning in the direction of the kitchen, Izou first thought the pompadoured idiot had done something to aggravate the ex-captain. That ship sank when the wispy ball of fire was tossed over the teen's shoulder as he began walking away. Transfixed, the three Whitebeard Commanders look on in wonder as Luffy somehow catches the flame then starts an easy game of catch with Sabo.

* * *

Finished putting the final touches to his meaty spaghetti sauce together, Thatch whistled a jaunty tune as he ambled over to a nearby sink where a giant strainer held an equally large portion of spaghetti noodles. Collecting them from the sink, giving the strainer and its contents a good couple of shakes and tosses to be sure most of the water was gone, he brought them over and dumped them in a large bowl near the sauce and added a little vegetable oil to keep the noodles from sticking together as they cooled. It was placed right beside the handful of other large bowls of noodles he'd made, figuring that if the Trio were late he could use the extra time to whip more helpings of food into being.

Standing back, the Head Chef surveyed his work. In addition to the several servings of spaghetti (enough to feed Jozu and maybe Kingdew in one sitting), there were mashed potatoes, grilled corn, steamed broccoli, carrots that were sautéed in honey, a medium-sized leafy salad (complete with cucumber, tomato, and carrot garnishing), baked cinnamon and garlic asparagus (tastes better than it sounds!), a large tuna (grilled and glazed with a sweet pineapple-mango sauce), two platters loaded with juicy flank steak (rare), and another two buried under mounds of ribeye and T-bone steaks. To round everything off, Thatch added a few bowls of sliced fruit: apples, pears, pineapple, mango, oranges, peaches, and cherries. Aside from the sizeable heap of spaghetti, the largest dishes were the steaks…for good reason. He'd noticed the quantity of red meat versus other food disappearing from the freezers and storage areas had increased as of late. As they speculated Luffy to be a carnivorous Zoan-type, Thatch felt justified in assuming the youngest brother to be the main cause of the disappearing meat.

Staring at the sizeable spread of food on the nearby counters, the Fourth Commander absently mused, _'I'm missing something… What is it?'_

Mentally ticking off the dishes, that annoying niggling feeling he'd forgotten something tickling at his brain, Thatch thumbed his goatee in contemplation. Then the smell of baking bread slathered with butter and carrying a hint of garlic hit his nostrils.

"Shit! My bread!" Honestly, how could he have forgotten about the most important thing that went with spaghetti? Spaghetti just isn't complete without garlic bread to go with it!

Snatching a pair of oven mitts then dashing over and dragging the three loaves of garlic-y, buttery goodness out of the big oven, Thatch released a sigh of relief to see they were only a little extra crispy and not (like he'd feared) burnt. "Thank the heavens! It would've been a pain to have to make more."

"More what?"

"Gyaah!" Surprised at the voice's sudden appearance behind him, Thatch gave a violent jerk that sent the hot loaves soaring in the air. It was only his quick reflexes that allowed him to deftly catch the falling bread on the remaining pan in his hands; the other had clattered to the ground upon his being startled.

Sending a disgruntled look over to the culprit of the garlic bread's near-loss, Thatch's eyes widened once he realized who the 'offender' was. Ace was standing just inside the now-open door separating the kitchen from the main dining hall. And lowering his hands after shielding his ears from the racket of the hot pan impacting the wood floor.

"Uh… Oops?" Thatch snorted at the semi-sheepish expression on the teen's face.

"It's fine," the commander replied, taking the bread over to a cutting board near the noodles and beginning to slice it up. "Dinner will be served soon as I finish cutting this up." Hearing nothing but Ace shifting in place behind him, obviously fidgeting, Thatch peeked over his shoulder at the fire-user.

Ace was alternately darting glances around the kitchen and scowling at the floor beneath his feet, occasionally shifting his weight from one foot to another. The chef couldn't see the other's hands, seeing as they were in the dark short's pockets, but he imagined they would be clenched in fists judging by the strain in the younger pirate's arms. Thatch noted that it is also the first time he saw Ace's long, wavy hair tied back in a low tail; a slightly thick strand of dark locks hanging off to either side of his freckled face, framing it under orange cowboy hat. The burnt-orange colored t-shirt the Logia wore buttoned almost all the way up. Strange, considering Ace normally wore his shirts unbuttoned. Closer inspection also revealed the formations of small greenish-yellow bruises along the darker brunet's arms (not many, only a few) and one on his right cheekbone.

"Need something?" Grey met hazel and Ace scowled at him before the younger's eyes fixed firmly to the floor again.

A huff and then, "'M sorry…"

Thatch blinked. He couldn't have heard that mumble correctly. "Sorry. What was that?"

Ace levelled an annoyed glare at the chef before giving a nearly imperceptible twitch of his shoulder and brow, quickly followed by a scowl shot at the open door to the room behind the fire-user. The commander watched, somewhat bemused, as the look morphed to one that, while still largely defiant, held traces of worry and disbelief. Thatch raised an eyebrow when Ace bit his lip, grey gaze skittering over his figure, returning to open door behind him. When the ex-captain turned back to face him, it was with a sense of resignation mixed with a clear air of I-don't-wanna-do-this-but-have-no-choice—Thatch has worn that particular expression on many an occasion, along with several of his brothers.

Taking his hands (fists) out of his pockets, body tense, Ace straightened up and crossed his arms over his chest. Giving the chef another glare, the Logia-user stiffly gritted out, "I'm sorry for acting like a jerk the last couple'a days."

The Fourth Commander gaped, knife clattering to cutting board in his shocked stupor. Ace was determinedly not looking at him, choosing to focus the brunt of his unhappy glower at something off to his right. It took a moment for the commander to realize the teen also had the beginnings of a blush dusting the one cheek he could see. It was another moment before Thatch came to the conclusion that the blush wasn't one of anger but of _embarrassment_ (or something close to).

 _'But what's he embarrassed about? Having to apologize or his actions?'_

"Um, thanks?" Seeing the younger pirate tense even more, blush deepening, Thatch made the executive decision to not draw any more attention to the topic. Turning back to the cutting board, he began slicing up the last of the bread then moved to grab some large bowls to put it all in. Taking furtive peeks at Ace, he was glad to see the teen slowly relax some as the younger's blush slowly dwindled away. Thatch also noticed the ex-captain warily (and hungrily) eyeing the food laid out on the various counters.

Curious to find if he could convince the younger man to leave the doorway, the chef gestured to the multitude of heaping dishes. "Mind helping me bring all this out to the others?" Ace's eyes flickered from the food to him, seeming to scrutinize both for something. Thinking he knew some of what the younger was hesitating over, at least regarding the food, Thatch assured him, "You don't need to worry about being allergic to anything. I think I remember enough of your guys' list to make sure of that."

Ace deliberated for a few seconds before cautiously approaching the commander, muscles still stiff and tensed for action. Thatch wanted to sigh and grumble his exasperation at the level of caution these three brothers exhibit to everyone but held his tongue. Instead, he put on a smile as he handed Ace one of the bowls of mashed potatoes—ignoring how the teen's eyes narrowed in obvious suspicion of the smile; seriously, what's these kids' problem?!—then collected the platter steamed broccoli right next to the one of grilled asparagus. Apparently, Ace found something funny about the dish because the instant his eyes landed on it he grinned.

"Something you wanna share?" Ace looked up at him, mischief sparkling in his grey orbs.

"Dare ya to put that by Sabo," was the sassy retort. That pulled the chef up short, Ace passing him to exit the kitchen for the mess hall.

"What's so bad about asparagus," Thatch mumbled in confusion, glancing from the door to the dish in question. A similar grin to Ace's spread across his face. _'Who am I to refuse a dare?'_

* * *

Turns out, Sabo isn't fond of asparagus. At all. In fact, that's a bit of an understatement.

After hooking some smaller flank steaks off one of the platters and setting (most of them) on Ace's plate and his, Marco amusedly listened to the younger blond make Luffy promise to chew at least five times before swallowing then setting the kid loose on the platters of steak. Both older brothers made a point of telling Thatch and Vista (who'd gone to help the chef bring over the food) to place all the red meat dishes on the table next to them. Once done, the little straw hat wearing raven immediately hopped over to them and started inhaling his food. Izou kept an eye on Ace when he caught the teen surreptitiously eyeing every dish Thatch brought out while avoiding being seen doing so by Sabo.

Marco took a small helping of potatoes and tuna, his brothers doing the same from the other choices laid out on the table. Ace eyed their plates and remarked that if the Whitebeards didn't grab what they wanted _now_ then the Trio couldn't guarantee there'd be any food left for them. Izou lightly commented that they had all already eaten a light dinner and were just sating what little hunger remained. Luffy, mouth full of food, just laughed and (what the commanders _think_ ) said "More for us!"

It was then that Thatch brought out the final dish from the kitchen: the honey-garlic grilled asparagus. Setting it in an empty space right in front of Sabo, the three seated Division Commanders stopped chatting with one another upon witnessing the younger top hat wearer's shoveling of food in his mouth grind to a screeching halt. The Fourth glanced down at Ace and found the kid trying to hide his grin behind a hand while stuffing more food in his mouth. Marco stared at teen seated across from him, Sabo's eyes narrowing to slits as he directed a venomous glare at the green vegetables. Standing up, Sabo shoved the platter of grilled stalks over to the side to make room for the platter of corn. In complete bewilderment tinged with some amusement, they watched as, with another deathly glare aimed at the stalks, the ex-Spade pinched the edges of the asparagus' plate (like it was something infected with some noxious disease), lifted and then resolutely dropped it in the new space before Vista. Even after sitting back down, to the four commanders' (and Ace's) growing amusement, Sabo kept shooting the platter of grilled veggies dirty looks.

Privately, Thatch was pretty damn sure the kid was trying to melt or disintegrate the asparagus with his mind. Keeping one eye on Ace—the orange hat wearing brunet looked as if he were going to start choking any minute now from suppressed laughter with how he kept shoveling food into that gaping hole of his—and wishing to know what had Sabo acting like the green stalks were a biohazard, the chef cleared his throat. Once he was sure he had the blond's attention, Thatch eloquently inquired, "Care to explain why you suddenly have a stick up your ass? Ow!"

"Stop being so crude, you big oaf," Izou scolded his sibling, folding and tucking his fan back into his kimono.

"I do not like asparagus," Sabo deadpanned.

Thatch furrowed his brow at the 'explanation' while his brothers opted for a blank stare. Marco glanced over to see Ace stuffing a large piece of tuna in his mouth as his shoulders shook. Vista, seeing the mildly disgusted look on the First's bored face, also looked at the fire-teen; if he didn't think the kid was very obviously trying not to laugh then he would've believed the younger pirate to be choking due to the very red face.

"Ookaaay… There's 'not liking' something and then there's acting like it's a diseased beast about to attack you—" Thatch got cut off when Ace really did start choking.

Vista went to hurry over and help but hadn't even finished lurching to his feet when an outstretched hand suddenly appeared, smacking Ace hard twice on the back before retreating as the teen finally took in a deep breath. Or, what was supposed to be a breath. The oldest brother was fighting to breathe through massive fit of laughter he was hostage to. Thatch, Izou, Marco and Vista were staring between Ace trying to stay upright in his seat and pounding the table and the path of the arm retracting back to its normal length to reach for the next handful of ribs.

" _Ace_ ," Sabo's growl returned the older pirates' focus to the two teens seated at their table. The blond had cleared his plate and was piling it high, again, with food while glaring at his laughing sibling. "If you do not shut up I _will_ hurt you."

Vista absently noted the return of the hand— _'So Luffy's Fruit lets him stretch?'_ —stealing Ace's plate during his response. So caught up in his troubles with breathing, laughing, and speaking, the teen didn't seem to register the now _empty_ plate's reappearance a bare moment after its abduction. Checking on the quiet youngest member of the Trio, he found the boy piling steaks into his maw and two empty large platters next to two half-full ones. Something felt off about that picture, besides the somewhat impressive yet nauseating sight of so much food disappearing into the child's gullet so fast, but the swordsman couldn't put his finger on it.

"Bu-but it's been _years_ and you _still_ —"

"I reserve the right to be _a little_ traumatized after _that_! It _ate me_ , you charcoal-brained ass!"

Ignoring his brother, and apparently the fact that they had an audience, Ace breathlessly threw out, "You're afraid of a damn _veggie_."

"Moths," Sabo bit back. Izou's eyes flicked from one ex-captain to the other, completely lost on what was going on. It was a small comfort that his fellow commanders appeared equally adrift, especially when the fiery brother's guffawing promptly ceased at the younger's statement.

A heated and defensive glare collided with Sabo's. "They were fucking _huge_ and _everywhere_ and one of them was about to _eat me_!"

"Actually, I believe they just wanted to cuddle with you," the blond replied primly, smirking at the incredulous look blooming on Ace's face. "It could have been like snuggling with a fluffy Luffy."

"Fuck that! They were poking me with their weird probe-y tongue-things and had _teeth_! Your stupid _vegetable_ didn't have _teeth_!"

"I got covered in _slime_ and it tried to _digest me_! You just got cuddled by over-sized _moths_ and over-reacted, damn baby!"

" _Did not_ 'over-react' and I was only _thirteen_!"

"I was _eleven_ , jackass!"

The thought of 'What the hell?' was bouncing through each commander's mind watching the heated argument between Sabo and Ace. Marco, not even wanting to touch the odd debate with a ten-foot pole while it was this late and tired from a long day, shifted brown eyes onto the eerily quiet youngest brother. And started.

"Luffy-yoi," he called out in worry, getting up and taking several quick steps towards the boy. It was _not_ normal, or healthy, to eat _bones_. He ignored the fact that the little raven's stomach was also bulging out rather grotesquely like an over-inflated beach ball.

Everyone's attention snapped to the Zoan in surprise then over to the one the First was hurrying for. Three platters sat empty and forgotten in front of the child. The fourth had two bones on it, obviously from the devoured T-bone steaks. Luffy, stomach bloated garishly due to the food he'd practically inhaled, was holding another meatless bone in one hand and had a fourth sticking out of his mouth. Marco judged it had just been put in there when Strawhat had paused in surprise at his sudden shout. As he watched, Luffy's expression of surprise turned to one of wariness edged with hostility and (he thinks) traces of confusion.

Vista, Izou and Thatch blink when Strawhat's lips pull back to bare a small line of teeth as a deep growl echoes from within the boy's small chest. At the same instant, Marco is brought up short by a chest-high wall of writhing, hot fire. The phoenix notices Luffy relax slightly at the sight of the fire though the growl doesn't stop, only diminish in volume. There's an almost feral air surrounding the boy and the commander's Phoenix is a little unnerved by it. The odd flash of amber in the younger pirate's orbs is attributed to the glow of twisting flame separating the First Division leader and ex-Spade.

Izou is clenching his fan under the table, hoping that the situation doesn't escalate and wondering why Blondie and Ace aren't concerned that the little shrimp has been munching on _bones_. Vista is wondering much the same. Plus, how did none of them hear the Little One crunching away? Certainly they weren't _that_ distracted by the pair's bickering?

"Um…" Thatch looks between the low fire-wall shielding Luffy, his brother and the two teenage pirates seated across from him. It's Sabo who seems to be the designated spokesman this time that answers his unasked question.

"Luffy is very possessive of his food when he is hungry." Or not.

Seeing as Sabo and Ace aren't up-in-arms about their little brother's actions regarding the bones, the First Commander takes a few steps back. The flames recede to settle in a low ring around Luffy's seat and the boy's growls finally cease. Vista notes it's not until Marco returns to his own seat that the Little One deigns to take his eyes off the other. A few crunches are heard and then the boy swallows the bone in his mouth, repeating the process with the one left in his hand.

Izou, disturbed at the fact Strawhat is _eating bones_ and his older brothers are _fine with this_ for some reason, asks, "Since when are _bones_ considered food? That's not normal."

Marco only half-listens to his feminine sibling's inquiry, too focused on the smaller pirate sitting at the other table. Thatch and Vista also catch the boy pausing in his bid to grab the remaining bones, flinching when the Sixteenth says "normal". Vista tries to get Izou's attention subtly, hating how the Little One now looks very unsure of himself and is shooting the Whitebeards glances out of the corner of his eyes. The boy starts fidgeting quickly in the loaded silence and Marco isn't surprised when the gentle flame at Luffy's hip crawls up his sides to spread over him like a blanket.

"There's nothing wrong with Lu," Ace bit out. Said little brother looked up at the older teen and Thatch felt there was something akin to worry in the kid's dark gaze.

Why? Is it really because Izou said Luffy wasn't 'normal' for wanting to eat bones? Marco appeared to be travelling along the same lines from the barely furrowed brows and sharp eyes directed at Luffy and the other two brothers.

"I didn't say—"

"No," Sabo interrupted the Sixteenth, ocean-blue gaze dark and chilly, "but that's what it sounded like you were implying."

Izou went to say something else but was distracted by Thatch's kick to his shin. He glowered at the chef until Marco caught his eye and subtly motioned with a flick of sky-blues in the direction of the other table. Turning, the gunner finally caught on to what the others had been observing. A feeling of shame swept over him and he quickly apologized for his insensitivity.

"I'm sorry, Luffy. I didn't mean to—that's not what I was trying to say!" Luffy's fidgeting eased and Izou cursed to himself when those dark eyes turned on him. "When I saw you eating those I worried that you might hurt yourself or get sick from eating them. Instead, I stuck my shoe in my mouth and blurted out something else."

Deciding things are _not_ going the way they want because now Ace and Sabo are uniting in their attempt to fry Izou with their glares—it's only a matter of time before Ace takes a more literal route—Thatch headed for the kitchen. Time to bring out the fruit bowl and grab his hidden treasure. The food was nearing gone and Thatch had a feeling that the rest would disappear too once the atmosphere lightened up.

Luffy turned to look at the bones then got up and moved to sit between his brothers. Both resituated themselves so that the youngest ended up on Ace's lap with his legs draped over Sabo's. To Marco, it looked as if Ace might fall off the bench if he wasn't careful thanks to Luffy's huge stomach. When that was done, dark chocolate orbs flickered between the four commanders.

Biting his lip, Luffy hesitantly asked, "Iz-Iz thinks it's bad? Eating bones is 'not normal' so does Iz-Iz think Luffy—"

"No! No, Luffy," Izou broke in, shocked and regretful of where his stupid words seemed to be leading the kid. "I don't think you're 'bad' because you like to eat bones. Yes, I think it's weird and a little…unappetizing, personally, but it's not something that would make me dislike you," he assured the younger pirate.

That appeared to be all that was needed because Luffy was smiling again (seemingly unaware of the warning looks being issued by the older pair of siblings) at the three commanders. The Whitebeards chuckled when the boy promptly stole a corn cob off Sabo's plate, much to the blond's displeasure. Those chuckles were cut short as Marco, Izou and Vista gaped in surprise when the small pirate grabbed the rest of the plate and up-ended it into his mouth then swallowed. The three commanders watched in disturbed fascination at the way the fourteen-year-old's throat _bulged_ —Izou, at this point, mentally threw in the towel and decided to help Haruta with other's self-proclaimed mission of figuring out Strawhat's "Mystery Fruit"—as the food _visibly_ slid down into his stomach. How had the kid not choked? And was he even _breathing_?

Thatch returned in time to see Sabo and Ace emanating the littlest brother, the little amount of food left getting sucked into the larger pair's stomachs at a slightly slower rate. Even the snack-like quantity of food on the commanders' plates disappeared with the assistance of stretchy hands. The pompadoured chef barely set the bowl of fruit down on the table before it was swarmed by human-shaped black holes, keeping his precious prize firmly out of the way (and out of the bird-brain's sight). It took a moment of watching, however, to notice a small pattern to the hectic frenzy.

Yes, there were growls exchanged between the Trio as they snatched fruit from the bowl and made attempts at the pieces in each other's clutches. There were also threatening snaps of mouths accompanying some of the growls when one of them didn't back off quickly enough. Luffy, unsurprisingly, was most active in this respect but Ace seemed a close second; Sabo, for the record, was the first to make a low growly-hiss when the smaller raven stole an apple quarter he'd been reaching to grab. Marco was the first to see what the older pair were doing followed by Thatch.

 _'They're baiting Luffy, yoi._ ' After the giant platters of meat, which even chewing the brat finished in record time, Luffy had only touched some of the other assorted food laid out. Largely, only what was directly in front of him. It hadn't been until Ace started filching from those plates, Sabo joining in, that Luffy began to eat again in earnest as a form of retaliation.

Thatch narrowed his eyes. _'Why would they need to motivate lil' Luffy to_ eat _? Is he sick?'_ The boy had looked skinny several days ago when huddled up to Sabo during his panic attack. Then, there were the times he'd noticed how Luffy (and to some extent the older two brothers) appeared more under than weather or agitated. Is it all because of Luffy's increasing "cabin-fever" and apparent "need" to visit an island for a few days every month?

Izou glanced over at the large chef, knowing probably exactly what the other was borderline frowning in concern over. Flicking dark chocolates back to the Trio who'd just finishing wolfing down a giant bowl of fruit, he felt it was high time to get one of his less-harmful questions out of the way. Considering the way Thatch was holding that "special" item so Feathers couldn't see it, the idiot chef also felt the need to salvage some of their (the commanders') situation with the enigmatic teens. That tense air from when he questioned Luffy over eating bones—the geisha-like male suppresses a shudder at the visual—was still hanging over them.

* * *

Vista's attention was stolen by Izou moving the large, now-empty fruit bowl off to the end of the table.

"So Commander Idiot—" "Priss!" "—told us something really interesting happened last night in the kitchens…"

Sabo had the perfect pokerface. Ace looked bored. Luffy…is scratching his arm lightly while looking between them and his brothers. The large dual-swordsman would say the boy looked confused but that fidgety itching if his arm might be a sign of nerves.

"We care why, exactly?" the fire-teen asks with obvious feigned-indifference. The tiny glint in those grey eyes alludes to humor at the topic opener.

Twirling his fan in hand, Izou dips a shoulder in a semi-shrug and turns to look off to the side. In a light tone, his brother states, "Just that someone claims they met Birdy supposedly guarding the place from wayward ghosts. Except…" Vista wants to roll his eyes at the other's show, the kimono-clad man tapping the edge of his fan against his chin in faux thought. "Birdy here was in the Communications Room with Thatch at the time. So, I wonder who was in the kitchen…?"

Vista doesn't really get why his feminine brother complains about Thatch's dramatics so much, Izou is just as guilty of the habit. Though, he'll admit they're less…demanding in nature than the auburn-haired commander's version. Iz's tend be more towards the suspenseful side of the spectrum, Vista supposes. Regardless, Thatch appears fed up with the delay.

In two seconds, the chef is plunking a pineapple onto the table, planting his hands on either side of the fruit, then leaning forward towards the boys. Expression eager and hopeful. "Please tell me how you did it! This is awesome! Great craftsmanship, looks just like the feather-head!" Vista swore he could sparkles in his younger adoptive brother's eyes.

" _Thaaatch_ …" He stifled the urge to laugh at Marco's growl, refusing to look at the First Commander's face. That would definitely break his control.

Which broke anyway when the Fifth turned to find expressions radiating shock and confusion, though he could also see some amusement and pride in their eyes. But, for the most part, the three just looked very surprised at Thatch's outburst. He heard Izou chuckling quietly behind a hand to his side. A ghost of a frown marred Vista's face when he noticed the shock and surprise in Sabo and Ace's faces bleeding into the beginnings of apprehension. It barely started before rapidly disappearing when the Little One laughed and nudged a shoulder into each of his brothers.

"See! He thinks it's funny too!" Dark orbs filled with mirth turned to Thatch. "Sabo's really smart! Ace gave Sabo the idea and Sabo made it work. Luffy helped!" Despite the happy and pleased expression Little One wore as he said this, Sabo and Ace's turned a little guarded as they glanced at a glowering Marco.

Izou must've noticed the shift as well, for his brother bopped the folded fan lightly on the Zoan's forehead. "You can make the oaf go for a cold swim later so stop glowering, Birdy. And," the Sixteenth giggled, "I would also like to know how pulled this stunt off. It's hard to pull one over on the Whitebeards." The Trio stared at them for a few seconds, features completely blank.

Then simultaneously burst into laughter.

It died down a couple minutes later, but now Vista _really_ wanted to know what they had done to convince the hapless division member of the fake Marco's identity. With a broad smile, the three's cheer was infectious, he asked, "Care to share?"

"Hahaha, yeah. Sure, we'll tell you," Sabo answered him, a mischievous grin in place. The younger blond pointed at the pineapple sitting innocently on the table. "By the way, the face and name were Lu's idea." Vista, Thatch and Izou snickered at the twitch in Marco's brow upon learning that.

"Where did you get my jacket and why?"

Ace's grey eyes met Sabo's for a moment, returning to meet with the blond Whitebeard's gaze with a small shrug. "Sabo said we needed a jacket you wore so I borrowed a clean one from the laundry."

"How'd you find them? The room and jacket?" Even Vista had had trouble locating the room his first couple months aboard. It wasn't _hidden_ , but the room was near the ship's engine/boiler room and was a pain to get to if you didn't know where to go; the _Moby Dick_ is a huge ship after all, so there was that against him too. Plus, though Marco's clothing preferences made his stand out a tad from everyone else's, there are some whose own jackets are very similar to the blond's. The swordsman wasn't going to start on the fact that they went to scrounge the large laundry room instead of Marco's closet for the article. Vista felt he already knew the answer to that one.

At hearing his question, the older pair jerked a thumb at the young pirate between them.

"For both, yoi?" The pair nodded.

"Luffy's good at finding things," is Sabo's affectionate, and very vague, response. Luffy beamed up at his brother and Vista couldn't resist smiling at the pride glowing in it. Little One's head twisted around, going the _wrong way_ —he caught Izou turning a faint shade of green at the very _unnatural_ action, heard Thatch gulp after a minute flinch, Marco's subtle but sharp intake of breath—and Vista paled a touch in surprise, to scowl at Ace when the other spoke up on the kid's left.

"Even if he shouldn't," Ace muttered. The tone was warm but wry; resigned and exasperated but loving and accepting. It did not match the twin smirks adorning the top- and cowboy hat wearing teens however the Fifth knew _those_ were likely due to his and his siblings' responses to Luffy's sudden flexibility.

"What do you mean by that?"

Ignoring Thatch's question, Sabo continued the previous topic with, "We had Ace sit at the table near the door wearing Marco's borrowed jacket and leaning his head back over the chair's back. I was hidden behind him holding the pineapple in place of Mr. First's head and manipulating it when the division member came in." Seeing Marco glower at the cheekily grinning boys, Vista held a white-gloved hand against his mouth while stiffening his muscles to keep from shaking (Thatch didn't bother, hooting loudly in delight, and Izou outright giggling).

Luffy snagged the pineapple off the table and held it towards Marco, lips stretching to form a large and bright smile. "See? Ace drew the face so it would look just like Mango! Luffy wrote Mango's name too so everyone would know!" Tears were forming in Vista's squinting eyes.

The kid looked so happy with the Trio's work, completely innocent and proud as he held the fruit up for Marco's inspection (the swordsman could see the man's eye twitching, a strained smile on his brother's lips). Vista knew he was turning red with how hard he was trying not to laugh, his whole torso shaking as he tried to hold it in. Little One didn't appear to be implying any offense against the First, staring at the tall man with big, seemingly guileless eyes filled with a want for approval. On either side of him, the boy's brothers were trying to pull off the same look with very little success; storm-grey and ocean-blue alight with mischief and mild mockery that contrasted with their younger brother's innocent eagerness while biting their lips to hold in obvious laughter.

"That looks nothing like me yoi. I _do not_ look like a damn pineapple," Marco grit out. If Vista could see properly—yes, he was still making a go of not releasing his mirth; Marco had a tendency to add to other's paperwork if he felt the need to and this looked like one of those times—he is certain that the older man would be glaring at the "offensive fruit".

"Well…the 'face' doesn't match exactly because of turkey-Mango's beak—" Thatch, still laughing, snorted at the comment "—and the leaves _are_ the wrong color and were too tall…" Izou's giggles shifted to full-out laughter by this point and Vista found himself quickly losing ground in his battle. The bright grin, which had faded during the young teen's description, returned with added delight as the boy exclaimed, "But Sabo said the color was fine because it would be dark and Luffy took off leaves so Pineapple Mango's 'hair' would be the same as Real Mango's! So now it _does_ look like Mango!" At this point everyone (bar Luffy and Marco) lost themselves to mindless laughter.

It took several minutes, during which Little One joined in with the other's boisterous guffaws (though Vista thought the kid did it simply because Ace and Sabo were laughing), before the group were able to pull themselves together. Marco had a small smile hedging his lips, probably because of Luffy, even as the man was pointedly scowling at the far wall and ignoring them.

"Hehehe, whew! Okay, we got the pineapple and jacket," Thatch said a tad breathlessly, "and I'm gonna guess the flames were Ace's handiwork, but… The overgrown turkey and I were told you even _sounded_ like him. Who did that?"

"I'm intrigued by the flame part," Vista added, gaze swinging between his fellow commander and Ace. _'We know Ace has good control over his fire but Marco's Phoenix's flames are unique. His feathers are real but coated in fire. How did Ace mimic that?'_ It seemed his question was the easier to answer (or the brothers were more open to it for some reason).

Shrugging his shoulders, Ace replied blandly, "I ate the Flame-Flame Fruit so I'm made of fire and can manipulate it. Making a blue flame isn't hard."

Vista, going with the Trio's choice in subject, eyed the ex-captain contemplatively and voiced his earlier thought. "Perhaps not, but what about making it look like feathers? Our division members _know_ the difference between some blue flame and _Marco's_ Phoenix-fire."

Grey eyes flickered from him to Marco's form briefly, prompting Vista to also look and find the man in question staring intently at Ace. Switching back to the brothers, the swordsman was caught by the sudden shift he found in Luffy's gaze. Dark orbs, blank but somehow deep, were staring at each of the commanders and Vista had the uncanny impression they were being closely examined and measured. He only caught the tail-end of the little pirate's stare, assuming it had started with Marco then worked its way to him at the end, for a blink later found the boy looking up at his brother and leaning into Ace's side. The tense air around both ex-captains seemed to relax then. Vista, trying to be as subtle, carefully cast a look of silent question at his fellow commanders to see if they had noticed Luffy's actions and the older pair's response. Receiving confirmation from each, he returned his focus to the Trio.

He couldn't help his eyebrows raising in a show of surprise. Ace, arm around Luffy (who'd begun fidgeting again), had his eyes closed and looked to be deeply concentrating on something. Sabo had moved closer to the two ravens so that his left side lightly pressed against Ace's arm holding Luffy, left hand stretched behind and rubbing the youngest's back. Luffy was busy looking around the room, the commanders and his brothers, gaze constantly twitching about. And yes, this was all _very_ surprising to Vista and, he was certain, to Izou, Thatch and Marco as well.

This was the least _guarded_ he and his brothers had ever seen the three. The Trio were in a room with _four_ Whitebeard Commanders that they were in close quarters with. With Ace obviously too focused on something to be aware of his surroundings, Sabo and Luffy would normally be keeping watch of everything going on. Rather than narrowly eyeing the commanders like a couple distrustful hawks, there had been several instances in the past minute alone where _neither_ younger sibling had an eye on any of them. Instead of being tensed up and ready to fight at moment's notice, especially with Ace preoccupied and open, the three are fairly relaxed. Vista can still detect a sense of wariness in the set of Sabo's shoulders and the blond's eyes; a less noticeable shadow of the same in Little One's darker pair; the reluctant rigidity to Ace's frame that alludes to the older brother's unease. It takes another minute for the shock of what he's seeing to wear off before Vista comprehends what is going on.

 _'They're_ trusting _us_ ,' he realizes. ' _Or, at least they are trying to_.' Izou had told them and Pops of the morning breakfast the geisha had with the Trio but the situation then compared to now is _completely_ different.

Peeking at his adopted siblings, Vista sees the same glints of knowing and awe that are likely mirrored in his own features. Joy, wonder and some pride bubble up in him to mix with his feeling of shock. Because these boys are so damn careful and wary of others getting near them, getting to actually _know_ them, that it has taken three weeks to get this far. Three _weeks_! From what little the Whitebeards have learned thanks to the Trio's old crew, and what assumptions/conclusions they're able to draw from the bits and pieces they discover, even this small amount of progress in that time is considered astounding.

Vista squeezes a hand into a tight fist, hidden under the table, at the sour feeling that thought brings. Again he wonders what's hidden in the three brothers' past that led to this. He talks with Little One a lot during his snack-bearing visits with the brothers and is pleased that Sabo has become far less formal around him and Ace willing to offer input without coaxing. But all of those talks are practically inane in nature, none of them truly offering real glimpses into or facts about their earlier lives. The tiny fragments Vista _is_ able to see after all this time tell him that Luffy, Ace and Sabo are too used to being alone with nobody to rely on but themselves. The Fifth's fist tightens, soft leather stretching across the back of his hand, as anger simmers to the surface as he remembers the moment he finally realized what likely caused the Trio's extreme mistrust of others. The now customary promises and setting aside of weapons prior to getting close to simply chat or be near them, the extreme awareness of their surroundings, never catching them asleep in the open (only naps and two acting as sentinel for the third), the (thankfully fading) wariness of any offered food, never allowing anybody within arm's reach (Luffy's recent habit of sitting on Pops' chair for stories notwithstanding)…

Betrayal.

Honestly, Vista feels a sense of shame that it took so damn long to put the very visible hints together. He'd swiftly disappeared from eating dinner with his brothers when the probable reason for the three's behavior and habits finally hit him. Marco found him in an old training room, dinner long passed, still slashing and hitting targets with his swords and offered to spar with him instead. Vista's agreement with the suggestion was probably the only thing that saved the room (and training dummies/targets) from needing to be totally rebuilt—Blamenco had been very vocal over the room needed extensive repairing to begin with until Vista saw Marco quietly talk to the other commander and the man's ire rapidly fade to understanding. The swordsman hadn't been so sure of Pops' decision to invite (aka kidnap) the fire-wielder to (forcefully) join the _Moby Dick_ crew; even less certain when the two other crazy terrors came after the brat. Vista fully admits to wishing he had a picture of his brothers strung up in the ship's rigging like Christmas tree ornaments and he thinks that event is what initially helped endear the idea of Luffy possibly being an okay addition. Now, the Fifth Commander truly wishes for Little One, Ace and Sabo to join their large family, the desire growing stronger as he spends more time with them. Consequently, the conclusions he's been drawing about their early lives has his anger towards the ones at fault increasing as well.

How did it happen? How bad was it? And then his other fist squeezes close under the table when another question he'd asked himself that first night, slashing to pieces dummy after hapless dummy, comes to the fore. _How many times_? The thought hurt but made so much damn _sense_ and Vista really wishes (hopes) he's wrong. He hasn't spoken with any of his brothers or father about his horrid suspicion yet. Vista doesn't want the awful idea made more concrete by their potential agreement.

A hand on his left fist, drawing Vista back from his dark reverie, has him looking to the side to see hazel eyes reflecting worry and warning. Thatch makes a faint motion with them towards the Trio, silently asking him to pay attention. The mustachioed pirate turns his focus back to the Trio and finding himself the subject of a fidgety Luffy's cautious gaze, Sabo's wary blue one observing him as well. Banishing his darker musings, Vista lifts his hands and folds them on the table and relaxes his muscles. Giving the two a smile of apology and reassurance, it's when the younger brothers' bodies unstiffen that Vista's attention is drawn to the small pricks of light (he estimates close to a hundred) decorating each of Ace's arms. He doubts his zoning out lasted more than a minute, thankfully, and the only change in Ace, aside from the odd blue lights, is that the arm not around Little One is now on the table.

The glowing spots pulse once, twice, then a third flare leaves them much larger, each individual flame layering together to give the impression of—

"Feathers," Izou breathes, leaning forward to get a closer look.

"About time, Charcoal-Brain." Ace's eyes blink open and glare over Luffy at the blond.

"Shut up, Seafoam. I'm tired and this is harder than it looks, jerk."

Vista, copying Izou, bends to get a better look at the 'feathers'. "Why not just cover yourself in a blue fire? Wouldn't that be easier than making hundreds of small ones?" The color isn't quite right, the blue a little too pale and not as 'full' as Marco's Phoenix feathers, but very close. In a dark room he could see how someone _might_ mistake this for Marco's fire.

"I could, but it wouldn't looks the same and Sabo is a slave-driving perfectionist when it comes to his plans," Ace replies with a note of irritation at the end.

Sabo shrugged at the accusation. "Only sometimes and not when Lu is involved. Besides, you were bored and it gave you a new practice method." Vista quirked an eyebrow at the part about the straw hat wearer.

Apparently Thatch was curious about the same thing because his brother blurted out, "Why not Luffy?" Twin groans announcing years of experience and acquired resignation echo from the older pair of brothers. Luffy immediately scowls at his siblings then proceeds to sulk, still held against Ace's side.

"Luffy and plans…don't get along?" Sabo offers with a pained grimace.

Ace snorts and proclaims, "Lu plus 'plan' equals 'shit going haywire'. Usually, when exposed to Lu, plans tend to explode into tiny pieces to rain down on its makers with no hope in hell of putting it back together. We think 'plans' are allergic to Luffy Luck." Sabo nods along with the explanation, expression one of mock-suffering. Vista decides the younger pirate sounds too damn perky about this perceived fact, until he recalls how Pops' original plan involving Ace's recruitment (then the secondary for including all three brothers) went.

' _I suppose I can see some truth in that. Not convinced Little One is some sort of "bad luck charm" regarding plans, though._ ' Flicking his eyes back to Ace's arm, he was reminded of another thing that had escaped his notice (and his brothers' since they weren't saying anything either). _'Why is Marco being so quiet?'_

Peering around Thatch and Izou, ignoring the two questioning what "Luffy Luck" is (they'll tell him later anyway), Vista grinned when he spotted the First Commander. The older blond's normally bland face and equally bored-looking eyes were scrutinizing Ace's bright flames with a single-minded focus, blue orbs glimmering with a sense of fascination.

 _'Guess the old myths are true_ ,' the commander mused, watching one of his brother's hands twitch as if it wanted to touch the blue fire flickering across Ace's arm. _'Phoenix's are fond of fire._ ' Marco _did_ have tendency to hang around any bonfire the crew built during their land-based parties; sticking to the edge of the merrymaking (chaos) surrounding the blaze until things quieted down, then moving to sit as close as the heat would let him. _'Marco's interest in Ace since the beginning makes more sense in that light, too, I suppose._ '

A flash of disappointment crossed the Zoan's face and Vista, hearing soft sounds of the same nature coming from the other two commanders, knew Ace had dispelled the fires.

* * *

Marco only became aware that he was being observed after Ace's blue flames dissipated (leaving only one little fireball behind in his hand). A glance to his right confirmed the feeling; Vista peering at him with a stupid I-caught-you grin on his mug. Ignoring his brother, and the damn grin widening out of the corner of his eye, the Phoenix-zoan resumed watching Ace—

Who's staring at Izou with clear suspicion as the Sixteenth narrows his gaze on the fidgeting shrimp. As the kimono-wearer goes to open his mouth he cuts himself off when Sabo reaches over and _grabs_ the blue ball of fire out of Ace's hand. Izou tenses at Marco's side and the First somehow knows that his sibling is surreptitiously glancing at the prominent burn scar marring Sabo's face and neck. Luffy seems to notice the feminine male's sudden tension too, as well as its cause, because the kid's dark eyes are now fixated on Izou. A challenge burns in those expressive eyes—the pineapple-blond wondering how Luffy's eyes always seem so expressive, then confused over how the kid makes them practically void of emotion the few times he focuses those oddly unsettling stares on others—and Marco knows, with how twitchy Strawhat is right now, he's about to growl. Maybe also something else seeing as the little pirate's figure stiffens and is subtly shifting to take a more attack-ready form.

Thankfully, before anything manages to start, Sabo distracts the youngster by holding the small fireball right in front of his eyes. "Want to play, _Lú_?"

Marco wants to say something about the nickname is… _different_ than usual but he doesn't understand _why_ ; the odd notion too vague and slippery for him to grasp clearly.

An excited gleam enters Luffy's eyes and, as the blond brother tosses the blue fireball away from the group, the First Commander watches as it grows from a few inches in diameter to a foot. With a sound Marco can only call a 'yip', Strawhat takes off after the floating ball. As he watches the little impromptu entertainment (watching the kid leap to grab the flame, only to miss as it dodges at the last second), feeling a soft smile tug at his face, there's a chuckle followed by two others.

Down at the end of the table he hears Vista mutter good-naturedly, "He's like a puppy." Marco gives a nod of agreement.

"Pfft!" All four commanders turn to see Sabo and Ace snickering, the latter continuing on to say, "A 'puppy'? Dunno if that's what I'd call Lu. Wha' do you think?" Sabo grins.

"He's more a cat than a dog. So 'kitten'?"

"Hmmm… Little big to be a kitten, doncha think?"

"Suppose so. Tiger Lord cub, then?"

Ace 'hmms' noncommittally and shrugs after a moment, the grin on his face matching Sabo's. "Close enough."

 _'The hell is a "tiger lord", yoi? I've never even heard of such a creature._ ' Marco makes a mental note to look into the beast, a gut feeling telling him that it may have something to do with the enigmatic Trio's unknown past.

"I'm _so_ lost," Thatch dazedly comments.

"You're always lost," Izou returns. Seeing his brother's attention return to Sabo, both commanders ignoring the chef's indignant grumblings, Marco leans over to quickly whisper in the other's ear.

"Don't forget my earlier warning _again_ yoi," he says, keeping an eye on the pouncing and growling Luffy. Izou gives a sheepish, tiny nod at the stern command before gathering himself and clearing his throat.

Once he has Sabo's gaze centered on him, though Marco can tell his brother has perhaps half the younger blond's attention at best, the Sixteenth tilts his head in Luffy's direction. "What did Stra-, er, Luffy do?" Getting nothing but a raised blond brow, from both blond pirates, and a curious glance from Ace and the other two Whitebeards, Izou elaborated, "Your ploy of a fake Marco. From the sound of it, only you and Ace played an actual part in it while Luffy hid."

Vista nodded as he watched Luffy, grinning when Marco heard a particularly loud growl and a 'thump'. Thatch, obviously finding more meaning in Vista's chosen activity, slapped a large hand over his mouth to muffle a bark of laughter. Ace, also keeping his eyes on the small pirate, smirked and Marco knew he was responsible for whatever had happened. The First, catching how Sabo's blues sharpened, was far more interested in whatever the brothers had to say for Izou's question.

"Thatch-yoi and I were told that whoever was in the kitchen sounded exactly like me," Marco prodded. "Was it Luffy?" Sabo seemed hesitant to answer, darker eyes flicking to Ace then over behind the older blond. Ace was now borderline glaring at him, distrust and caution flashing in the steely orbs.

"Marco, watch—!"

The Zoan jerked back at the abrupt appearance of Luffy landing on the table right in front of him. Izou had been so startled he nearly fell backwards off the bench and, if he looked, Marco was sure Thatch and Vista would have similar looks of surprise.

 _'I didn't even sense or hear him coming, yoi._ ' He's normally aware of his surroundings and the fact this kid could sneak up on him was disconcerting. Marco's steadily becoming more and more convinced that these brothers have _definitely_ had someone teach them about haki. It was the only thing that made any sort of logic (he refused to believe his skills were getting rusty).

Staring at Marco from the opposite side of the table, blue fireball in his hands dispersing into nothing, the straw-hatted teen remained silent for a couple more seconds. Then a big grin that forced his eyes closed grew on Luffy's face. "Luffy is good at copying sounds, but Sabo had to tell Luffy what to say," the boy chirped.

"It was _you_?" Marco isn't _as_ surprised as the Fourth Commander, having suspected something of the sort, but was still a little astonished.

 _'I thought it would be harder than that…_ ' The Trio were very tight-lipped on any abilities (fighting or otherwise) they possessed, so Marco had been expecting more of hassle getting that answer.

" _Luffy_ ," Ace hissed, glaring at the smaller raven. Apparently Ace and Sabo were also shocked, and fairly annoyed, their brother had disclosed that.

"It's fine," the bouncy pirate blithely replied, hopping onto the opposite bench and scuttling over to sit next to his blond brother. Fire-Fist grumbled unhappily but settled down like Sabo had at the kid's words.

 _'I still don't understand how they operate, yoi._ ' Moving on, Marco inquired, "How good are you yoi?" He _did not_ like the change that question caused in the kid's grin.

Grabbing the long-forgotten pineapple off the table and holding it up in front of his face, Luffy stated, "I am the pineapple-head, Mango-yoi. I turn into a fire-turkey!"

Shocked silence filled the mess hall… For a grand total of ten seconds.

Thatch fell off the bench, grabbing his stomach and shouting about being in pain while belting deep guffaws as he rolled from side to side. Vista's hunched over and Marco could see tears dripping down his face, smacking the table with a fist as his even deeper, and almost louder, laughs mixed with the chef's. Izou wasn't much better off; both hands wrapped around his middle and head planted on the table as the feminine commander snorted and gasped through his barely quieter fit of mirth. Sabo and Ace were hanging off each other, crying and gasping for air as they laughed long and loud.

Luffy had removed the damnable pineapple from in front of his face after everyone collapsed into hysterics, though never let go of it. The cheeky brat was sporting a proud, sun-bright smile on his face.

After being stunned speechless, Marco felt something snap and a vein throb at his siblings' howls of laughter (half-consciously including his hopeful soon-to-be brothers with that term). He switched between glaring at each of the uncontrollably laughing pirates and glaring (a touch more softly) at the grinning, straw-hatted instigator.

From the ground, he heard, "H-holy shit, hahaha! He sou-sounded just li-ike you! Hahahaha!" Marco frowned down at Thatch.

"It wasn't that funny, yoi," Marco groused. Izou smacked him on the shoulder.

"W-was too! Li-lighten up, B-Birdy," his brother gasped out.

"H-hey, Lu-u," the Zoan glanced over to see a teary, red-faced and breathless Sabo looking at Luffy, "Wha's wro-wrong?"

The shrimp, who'd been studying the pineapple in his hands with an expression of confusion and deep-thought, pursed his lips. When the kid raised his eyes to stare at Marco, the commander felt an uncomfortable sense of dread descend upon him. It wasn't any consolation that the others had heard Sabo's question and were making efforts to tamp down their bursts of laughter to hear the response.

Holding the tropical fruit up, innocence and naivety plastered across his face, Luffy asked, "Ne, can Luffy eat you, Mango?" That…

Marco sighed, face landing in his palm, while peals of howling laughter erupted once more in the room. This time, Ace and Sabo were quick to join Thatch in gasping for air between boisterous fits on the floor. The First Commander wished the loud 'thunk' signaling the pair's meet-and-greet with the ground would leave bruises but doubted he'd be _that_ lucky.

Lifting his face from his hand and finding the too-innocent mug still looking at him with traces of confusion hedging its features. Marco gave a resigned nod. A cheer, huge pearly-white smile and second later, the godforsaken pineapple of misery is swallowed whole by a very pleased-looking Luffy.

Honestly, Marco really, _really_ wanted to call it a night at this point. Forget this whole damn thing with the stupid, miserable pineapple and pretend it _never_ happened.

(He willfully disregarded the tiny voice in the back of his head saying the story would be all over the damn ship before noon hits tomorrow.)

* * *

"Go to bed, Marco."

"Since when are you this pushy, yoi?"

"Since you started acting like a brooding hen. You took over watch last night and several times before that. _Go sleep_."

"….."

"Fine. _I'll_ go check on them and keep watch for the first shift."

"Thought you didn't like Luffy, yoi. Or his brothers."

"Hmph. I don't know them enough to say whether or not I like 'em. Something's off about the fry, the blond's sarcastically polite, and Fire-Fist's attempts on Pops annoy me."

"…..Still think Sharley's prediction is about one of those three, yoi?"

"Hn."

"And you—"

"Pops wants Fire-Fist and that means taking in the other two as well. Just _go to bed_ , Marco. I'll tell you if anything happens."

"Hhhf. Okay, you win yoi."

Namur waited until his brother disappeared behind the other's cabin door before turning around to begin his trek to the main deck. Marco had been right in that he isn't completely fond of Pops' decision for the ex-Spades to join their family; doesn't mean the shark-fishman is going to go against it though. Pops is captain and a great man. A man Namur is lucky enough to call his father and be called the man's son in return. It's something which he takes great honor and pride in.

That Fire-Fist mocks it at almost every opportunity and the blond ex-Spade sounds both dismissive and almost derisive about the subject angers him. Namur can't say anything about the straw hat fry because he hasn't really heard anything regarding the brat's views over that topic—other than the instances Strawhat basically challenged them to try recruiting Fire-Fist.

Truthfully, the one he's most nervous about joining their crew (if they _do_ end up agreeing) is the small fry. The odd scent around him has faded but it's still present and the wildness of it sets Namur's teeth on edge. The Eighth Commander's not human and has instincts most land-walkers don't possess but that doesn't make the ignorant humans' claims of him being nothing more than a mindless beast true. Those same instincts, which he takes pride in, also seem to be whispering that Strawhat isn't like the average human. That the fry's something more like him.

It's confusing and troubling. Namur's nose says that Strawhat's scent is mostly that of a human's with something extra under it (probably related to whatever the fry's Fruit is). But if he's near the kid then something deep inside, some sort of primal instinct, warns him to be wary and stay away. Softly hums that the little raven-haired fry is _dangerous_ and could see Namur as _prey_ if he isn't _watchfulwarycareful_. The incident with the wild fry mauling his brother's arm, tearing it to shreds, and then trying to attack Thatch made the fishman more willing to obey and listen to the murmurs. Therefore, it's no real surprise Marco—who the Eighth confided in after also talking to Pops—was a little skeptical (and stunned) over Namur's offer.

 _'But they can't be_ that _bad if Marco, Thatch, Vista, and Izou are willing to vouch for the ex-Spade Trio._ '

All were good judges of character (especially the First Division Commander) and had developed some protective tendencies towards the teenagers. Case in point, Marco's newest habit of taking over watch whenever he discovered the Trio were sleeping or hanging out topside. Or how Thatch had made sure everyone knew the three were going to be eating meals in the mess and they were not come in unless it was an emergency. Vista took to acting as a guard of sorts for when the ex-Spades were hanging out on the stern or bow, keeping curious onlookers at bay and providing the teens with a bit of privacy. Izou could be seen taking a book to the blond so the other wouldn't have to separate from his brothers, and today Namur had seen his brother disappearing into his room with a smile and basket full of fabrics.

Namur decided that, if his adopted siblings were trying that hard with these newcomers, then he could shove aside some of his apprehension and lend a hand when they needed it. That's why the fishman found himself using Observation Haki to scan the ship's top deck for three elusive presences at basically midnight.

At least it wasn't raining. The _Moby Dick_ had left the calm patch created by the close proximity of three islands with different weather patterns. New World's seas were even more unpredictable than Paradise's, changing from one extreme to another at the drop of a pin. Experiencing such constant (predictable) weather as they had the past few weeks could only happen in an island's immediate vicinity or those special spots formed by one or more islands' systems extensively touching another. So there were more than just the previous two division members keeping watch at the helm now that the ship was heading away to a specific island and leaving that "safe" zone.

Like some of the other commanders and crewmen, Namur had doubts that upon reaching Monroes Island the ex-Spade Trio wouldn't jump ship (despite their promise stating otherwise). However, it wasn't his call to make but Pops'.

 _'Hmph, so they_ are _up here still._ ' The fishman is really starting to believe his siblings are correct in thinking the Trio had some previous haki training. It was difficult to sense them unless actively searching for their presence.

Walking towards the bow, his black eyes roved over the dark deck looking for the three pirate teens. His brow furrowed at finding nothing but a couple of his siblings walking about with a lantern each. Nodding a greeting to them, he continued on to see if the three "recruits" were at the figurehead. Air escaped from lungs through nose in an annoyed huff at finding nothing again. Namur could sense that the three were close, but their presences seemed fuzzy and hard to pin down. With a mutter under his breath, the commander left the railing blocking off the figurehead to see if the Trio were camped out in the shadows of one of the bundled piles of crates/barrels lashed to the deck. The fishman's interrupted by one of the patrolling lantern-holders (a Fifth Division member), who apparently noticed his troubles, coming over and quietly whispering that Trio were up the foremast. Before he leaves, Namur is also told that Vista either sits by the figurehead railing or on one of the crates/barrels near the mast; never at the base of the mast itself. And he is to be quiet or he'll "miss out on something."

 _'So Marco's even roped in Vista to play babysitter._ '

Thanking his ship-brother, he walks over to a set of crates and sits cross-legged on the deck, leaning back against the crate wall with arms folded across his chest. It's as Namur is pondering the odd parting advice that he hears snatches of quiet…talking?

 _'No,_ ' the commander frowns, glancing about for the source. _'Someone is singing._ '

The voice is almost drowned beneath the sound of waves against the hull, ropes and jigs quietly rustling, and sails snapping lightly in the wind. Concentrating, tuning out the noise around him, Namur focuses on the soft and lilting tune.

 _"Don't you worry, it'll be alright  
_ _Just take my hand, hold it tight  
_ _I will protect you from all around you  
_ _We'll be here so sleep safe tonight~"_

The one singing has a…not exactly 'deep', but certainly low and gentle voice. Rising and falling rhythmically and very soothing.

 _"For one so small, you seem so strong  
_ _These arms will hold you, keep you safe and warm  
_ _This bond between us can't be broken  
_ _Let your heart rest easy  
_ _We'll be here come morning light~"_

Namur erased the small frown he hadn't realized formed after finding out the song— _lullaby_ —had ended. Disappointment rolled through him and the fishman wished he'd gotten to hear the whole thing instead of just the ending.

 _'I suppose_ ,' the commander thinks, settling in for the promised sentry-duty with more aplomb this time, ' _if one of 'em sounds like_ that _then they can't be too bad…_ '

* * *

 **A/N: So there's part 1 of the hideously long chapter 13. Part 2 will pick up the next morning. Some fun will happen. Some serious stuff will happen. And there will be an impromptu rodeo of sorts. Sorry not too much happened here. Was in a bit of a slump getting through this chapter while over in Europe because I was too busy getting sidetracked writing out quick scenes thanks to the random bursts of inspiration around over there. Lots of good things that I can't wait to flush out in detail, but _did_ make it hard writing through the semi-boring _way fucking longer than I thought it was_ chapter.**

 **Name of the original song (ignoring the tiny bits I changed to make it fit the scene) is "You'll Be In My Heart" by Philip Collins. Yes it's from Tarzan, so what? I like the song because it is very sweet.**

 **If you see anything that looks like a typo or missed word please point it out. Would make editing this thing go a lot faster.**

 **TERMS:**

 **Liis'drak —[Lī-ss-d-rack; the 'd' (like in 'dog') is quick with a slight roll of the 'r' afterwards] Meaning 'lying scale', it is a more rude and derogatory way of saying 'false dragon'. When used, it is generally in conjunction with feelings of intense dislike and/or borderline hatred for the one being referenced by the term.**

 **Sabo and Ace also use this term in reference to the Celestial Dragons like Luffy does. Luffy, feeling insulted that a bunch of Humans (e.g. the CD) would dare to compare them to Drakkón, refuses to use the proper title most Humans refer to them as. Often, he will either call them _liis'drak_ (when around his brothers) or 'Bubble Heads'.**

 **Raishka —[Rī-sh-kah] Closest comparison would be calling someone a "fucking asshole" or "goddamned bastard" in English. Only associated with negative feelings towards the individual(s) being referenced by the term.**


	14. Countdown Hits Zero!

**A/N: So chapter 14 which is really more Part 2 of 13. At least it's long again. Power might (most likely** ** _will_** **) go out for me at some point this weekend because I live on the west coast and there is a huge storm coming. Supposed to be worst one a couple decades. Yay. Get surgery later today on both feet (fuck me) and I might freeze to death overnight because the power goes out and I can't get up to grab another blanket. Or, will go insane because I** ** _won't_** **freeze to death but will have nothing to do as I lay bed-ridden (or couch-ridden) for a few days. Kinda screwed either way.**

 **That said, expect the next couple of chapters to be a little…** ** _off_** **in what happens. Will be feeling sadistic and vindictive over my situation and won't hesitate to take it out on the characters. Monroes Island is going to be an interesting time for everyone and I don't care if nothing makes sense because it will make** ** _me_** **feel better. Don't worry. ASL won't be picked on too much. I'd worry more for the Whitebeards.**

 **I also don't care that both last chapter's and this chapter's titles suck. There. I said it. On with the show!**

 **UPDATE (10/23/16): Noticed that some of the last part of this chapter didn't make it in the first posting so am adding that now. Still going over previous chapters and making edits, so will let you know next time if there will need to be rereading (most might end up being optional but Chapter 1 gets somewhat of an overhaul). Also, after getting several PMs about Ace's 'Wisps' I decided to add that particular move to the ending A/N so I don't have to keep repeating myself over why they are more than glorified orbs of floating fire or why they're different from his 'Fireflies'.**

 **Disclaimers: you know the routine.**

* * *

 **Chapter 14: Countdown Hits Zero! Of Rodeos, Hopes, and Nicknames**

* * *

The next day wasn't overly eventful and passed by relatively smoothly. 'Relatively' being the key word; this _is_ the Troublesome Trio, after all.

* * *

Luffy, to Sabo and Ace's pleasure, had managed to sleep through most of the night with no bad dreams. The three had fallen asleep up in the foremast's crow's nest due to the dragon fledgling's rising aversion to being cooped up in a room. While there were no nightmares, it wasn't a peaceful sleep either. Many times the older brothers caught Lu's muscles twitch and spaz during their turn taking watch—no matter what their baby brother said of the new Humans around them, old habits die hard.

Although Luffy hadn't experienced any "bad" dreams that night, from the way he woke up his siblings knew they _were_ unsettling. He'd dreamed about playing with his _Atce_ and _Sávbó_ —in both forms, it was a dream after all—then having to hide because more Humans came but the three had been fine because Lu managed to fly them away. What the Drakkón left out, however, was how the sand in his dream turned to tiny rubies, the strands of long and thin beach grass turn golden… And the brief instant Luffy thought he saw Ace and Sabo's eyes glow violet. Of course, the older pair weren't stupid and knew something more had happened. They also knew Lu would tell if pressed, but refrained since they sensed nothing overly negative from the youngest after hinting towards the hidden pieces.

As usual, the Trio woke at the cusp of dawn just before the sun had risen and clambered down to sit on the ship's white figurehead. Ace and Sabo were dismayed to find Lu already getting antsy—the fidgeting, rubbing of arms and legs, and air of restlessness even worse than the day before—and, after creating a Wisp for Luffy to play with, the blond had Ace go inform the Fourth they'd be eating on the stern deck. The dragon was smothering his discomfort from bleeding across their mental bond but the other two could still feel the shadows of it (along with Luffy's rising irritation). Luffy liked the figurehead because he could see his personal representations of his family and it was the easiest place to focus on the quiet Whispers. They were difficult to hear sometimes, especially right now with how distracting the crawling sensation under his skin was, but seemed able to curb some of the irritability bubbling inside.

Ace, _positive_ Sabo's still sore over getting his shirt a little scuffed up and this was some attempt at punishing him, took his displeasure out on poor Thatch. He needed to practice his infiltration skills anyhow—Waves confirmed, through snooping about the Whitebeards' Navigations Room and eavesdropping on the helm operators yesterday, that there _is_ a Marine base/outpost on the island they're headed for—and what better way than to do so than sneaking up on one of the Old Mustache Bastard's commanders? (The fire wielding teen ignoring that this "sneak attack" is also partially to distract him from the residual embarrassment of remembering his apology to the chef, plus him lashing out over his Little Lu having to block off part of the bond. Both Ace and Sabo hated when Luffy had to do that and tended to get very testy at those times.)

Kingdew, who'd woken up early and couldn't get back to sleep, was heading to one of the training rooms when he caught sight of Fire-Fist walking (stomping almost) down a hall he was passing. The Eleventh Commander stopped to watch the teen for a moment—fire crackled across the other's shoulders, arms crossed, booted feet landing heavily on the floorboards, a dark look on a freckled face—before moving on when Fire-Fist passed out of sight. The large man paused mid-step, peering over his shoulder at the opening to the corridor where he'd spotted the younger pirate. Running over the brief image he'd caught of the teen's expression, Kingdew wondered confusedly, _'Was Fire-Fist_ pouting _?'_

* * *

Izou, up early as usual and on his way to the kitchens for a nice cup of creamy coffee, stared at the odd sight of two division members—from _his_ division the geisha realizes after a slow handful of seconds—in front of him. The taller of the two, about his height, balancing the shorter standing on their shoulders and trying to go on tip-toes to give the shorter a boost. The shoulder-stander directed the other while attempting to reach a vent tucked up against the ceiling. So distracted by the odd sight, it was another moment before the non-caffeinated commander took notice of a third person—from Haruta's division this time—off to the side asking the duo to "please stop."

Heaving a sigh, mentally griping that he shouldn't have to deal with this crap so early and without coffee, Izou asked, "What are you three doing?"

Surprised at the Sixteenth's sudden appearance, all three crewmen yelp at the sharp voice. The two by the wall lose focus and tumble to the ground; the tall member having jumped when he was startled, causing the shorter to unbalance and land awkwardly on his fellow before they collapsed in a pile at the wall's base. The third member had spun around to face Izou, issuing more of a squeak than a yelp as he did so. Izou folded his arms, left pointer-finger tapping against his right arm to iterate his previous question without speaking.

"Mornin'. Uh, we were…" The tall member glanced over at his shorter partner.

"Ummm… We, uh, thought we saw something and…wanted to check it out?" A manicure eyebrow rose.

"You 'saw something'….?"

"I saw a blue light disappear into the wall near the vent and these two heard me shout and came running and I told them about the light and they thought it was one of those ghosts everyone's been seeing and I said to leave it alone in case it _was_ and they upset and make it curse us and I don' wanna be cursed by no ghost!" Izou stared blankly at the third pirate now sucking in much needed air after his one-breath-rant.

 _'It was probably one of Ace's blue fireballs._ ' Which meant their hopeful soon-to-be-brothers were up because the freckled fire-user wouldn't leave the other two's side if they weren't as well. This also meant Ace was nearby, however a quick search using haki revealed nothing to Izou.

Wanting to get his coffee, Izou curtly instructed his ship-brothers to "stop being idiots" and that what they saw was _not_ a 'ghost' but a simple trick. If they couldn't figure out the truth behind the ghost rumors before Ace revealed his hand in them, Izou vowed to seriously rework his division members and schedule new training sessions. After the three idiots left, the kimono-clad male strode down the last bit of hall before making a left to head for the kitchen.

He didn't notice the screw-less grate covering another vent by the ceiling he'd just passed. Or that this one conveniently connected to one of the vent ducts that opened into the kitchen.

* * *

Sabo waited until Ace 'nudged' him, letting the younger know the early breakfast was set up and waiting at the stern for them, before making his way over from the whale figurehead. Luffy made for the nearest rope lines and scaled them to take a higher route to the ship's aft. Ace met the top-hatted blond at the base of the stairs with a steaming cup of coffee (with two sugar cubes, just like Sabo preferred) and a smug grin. Sabo accepted the peace offering—so what if he was still sore over the coat _and_ shirt from yesterday? He really liked that coat, dammit, and the shirt had been (kinda) new!—then gave his brother's face a pointed glance. The freckled teen grinned wider, threw a look up to make sure Lu was behaving (aka not trying to scratch his skin off), then strode up the stairs.

Luffy made it first but didn't stray from his perch on the half wall of the mizzenmast's crow's nest. Instead, not wanting to share the yummy meat he spied, the dragon waited for Thatchy to turn around to greet his brothers. Sabo, ignoring the younger's stretching arms snagging the large dish of steaks, blinked at the sight of the chef.

"I see," he muttered, taking a long sip of his drink. Thatch stared incredulously as the blond simply gave Ace an unimpressed look then maneuvered around the commander to sit down and start eating.

"That's it? 'I see'," the Fourth poorly mimicked. Turning around to watch the brothers, Ace having joined the blond in chowing down, Thatch dramatically waved to himself and cried, "Aren't you concerned or gonna ask if I'm okay?" It took a second for the larger man to notice that something was off about the scene before him. "Hey, where's Luffy at? And… Where'd the steaks and pork chops go!?"

In answer, not bothering to pause eating, Ace reached out to grab an apple. Catching the stupid chef's eye, the freckled teen threw it towards his baby brother and shot a small burst of flame after the fruit.

/Here, Lu. You can't have just meat./ At least the dragon took some white meat with the red. He and Sabo knew the extra rare meat would be the first to go.

Thatch watched the now-roasted fruit, refraining from commenting about wasting food, arc towards the crow's nest where a hand snapped out to catch it. The Fourth mouthed an 'Oh' then frowned. _'Why's he up there?'_

Finished with his meat, having basically swallowed the plates' contents in almost one go, Luffy leaned over the side to see if there were any more toasted treats being thrown at him. He pouted at finding the answer to be a 'no'. _'But there's more meat!'_ The dragon wiggled in excitement at spotting the platter of steak medallions wrapped in bacon.

/No, Lu. You need to eat something else first. And get down here!/ Thatch glanced confusedly from the sudden scowl on the small straw-hatted pirate's face to the recipient, Sabo.

"Me 'n Sabo'll eat them if you don't, Lu," Ace called, stuffing a large scoop of hashbrowns into his mouth.

Luffy growled, baring his teeth at the threat. _He_ wanted the meat!

Eyeing the growling boy above him somewhat nervously, Thatch heard Sabo mutter quietly, "Did you have to wind him up? Light's already in a bad mood." The older raven shrugged, deftly batting away grabby rubber hands aiming for the desired plate of bacon-wrapped medallions.

A little stunned at the unexpected show of Strawhat's Devil Fruit power, Thatch gaped as the thin arms tried stealing the food a few more times. Luffy let out another annoyed growl. Knowing he wouldn't be able to get the yummy meat unless he did as asked, the dragon relented and hopped down to the helm's roof then the ground. Ace and Sabo made room for their little brother to sit between them and returned to eating.

Thatch carefully observed how Ace and Sabo seemed to direct and coax the youngest sibling into things like they had last night. Any attempts by Luffy to snatch the platter of medallions were skillfully thwarted by one of the older two. The boy would growl, sometimes getting a retaliatory one from the sibling who'd stopped him, until his attention was caught by another food item Ace or Sabo put near him. It also wasn't lost on the chef that, amongst the rather chaotic scramble of hands shoving food into their mouths, Sabo and Ace were making sure Luffy was eating the food with the most carbs and calories. He laughed when Luffy practically cheered at finally being allowed to eat the coveted steak medallions (which Ace had reheated right before snagging some for himself).

Luffy jumped up and made to leave—to get somewhere high, see if the wind might soothe this maddening incessant _itch_ —but Ace was quick to grab his little brother's ankle. Thatch winced at the resulting yelp and 'thud', also standing so he could begin collecting all of the empty serving platters and bowls (the surrounding deck was full of them). The small pirate was quick to release an irritated growl at the owner of the hand latched around his foot, earning a similar but deeper one from Ace. A 'sharp' tap from Sabo's mind against Luffy's strangled the sound swiftly after its birth; one, to get their little brother's attention and, two, to keep Lu from growing irritated enough to decide challenging Ace _right now_ might be a good idea.

Sabo stared reproachfully at his younger sibling. /( _Disappointment Knowbetteryes?_ ) Light, we went over this last night. What are you supposed to say?/ The dragon ducked his head, making a short apologetic whine (and shooting his oldest brother a mild glare to which Ace responded with a second brief growl as he let go).

As Lu picked himself up the fiery sibling asked his second brother /( _Confused Dislike_ ) Why do we need to do _that_? We didn't last night. /

Sabo rolled his eyes. / _You_ didn't because you had another narcolepsy attack—Light pretended to fall on you and knock your ass out, by the way—so I was the one to say it while _Lú_ carried you up here. / He didn't mention the youngest had still been sore over Ace's "revenge" in the bathroom last night and let Ace's head connect with a couple doorframes on the way to the deck. The bumps had been superficial and though Ace had woken up a few minutes later with a minor headache no thought was given to the small ailment; it wouldn't be the first time he had fallen asleep and hit his head on something. /Plus, Mr. Thatch was willing to move the meal up here after you…/ the blond glanced at the chef with an amused glint in his eyes /Did whatever to him./

Intrigued by that statement, the dragon turned to see what _Sávbó_ was talking about. Luffy immediately dissolved into uncontrollable laughter.

The normally white outfit the man wore was covered in a huge black splotch, centered mostly on the chest and splaying up to the shoulders, to the sides, then down towards the tops of his pants. Several smaller splotches decorated the sleeves and ran down in drips down the legs. Thatch also had a few dots staining his face. The coloring, though obviously black, was more translucent and watery and made a several of the dark stains appear as a faded, dark grey-brown on the white cloth. It honestly looked like someone had walked up to the Fourth Commander and popped a balloon full of watered-down ink on him.

"Hahahaha! W-wha' shishishi!" Thatch sighed as he put another empty platter into the huge canvas bag he'd brought.

 _'Kid's just now noticing?'_

"Luffy sometimes has trouble being aware of his surroundings when food is involved," Sabo supplied, having guessed the commander's thoughts.

Ace nodded. Lu is a growing dragon and he and Waves had long reconciled the fact that, sometimes, the youngest's sole focus revolved around food. The fire-user bared a proud smirk when Sabo finally inquired as to what happened to Thatch's attire—done more for Light's sake since the blond already held the rough idea that Ace is largely responsible for the mess.

Turning to face the top hat wearing brother, Thatch dramatically waved at the smirking raven and exclaimed, " _He_ snuck up on me when I was in the process of making a new dish!" The chef didn't know how the kid did it either.

One moment, he's in the kitchen almost completely by himself (there were a few of his division present with more trickling in to start preparing breakfast for the rest of the crew) and the next… Bam! Ace is leaning against the counter right next to his station and munching on a toasted pear. The chef had been so startled by the other's unexpected appearance— _'Seriously, how in the_ hell _did I not sense him?!'_ —that he'd squeezed the damn ink sac he was about to use. What made everything worse, at least to Thatch, was that Izou came in right afterwards. His brother was the first to fall to giggles, swiftly upgrading to snorts and outright laughter that was picked up by everyone else in the room. Ace just stood there watching with an extremely smug look on his freckled face; Thatch promptly promised himself to get back at the teen upon seeing it. Whether the cowboy hat wearer knew it or not, he'd just as good as declared war on the ship's Master of Pranks!

"What were you about to make with that smelly thing anyway? Didn't look very good to eat…" Ace broadcasted an image of the odd sac-like thing the commander had been holding when his question received curious prods from Sabo and Lu. The dragon settled down enough to listen to the Commander's response (though Waves needed to coax him a bit to do so).

"It was an ink sac from a squid," Thatch started, a little surprised at the sudden shift in the three. "I was going to try a little twist on this squid ink seafood risotto using truffle oil and maybe serve it for dinner tonight." Luffy made a face at the "squid ink" part.

He'd caught a squid before—or was it an octopus? It had a lot of legs either way—so he can say for sure that the ink _is not_ very tasty. But maybe it would taste good on this 'ree-zo-tow' because of the chocolate oil? Luffy cocked his head to the side and asked, "Ne, does chocolate oil and 'ree-zo-tow' make the nasty ink taste yummy?" Ace and Sabo also looked up at the chef in interest.

"Uh…" Where did the kid get "chocolate oil"? "It's 'risotto', which is a type of rice-like pasta. Depending on how you use it, squid ink can add a unique and very good flavor to it. And…are you talking about 'truffle' oil when you say 'chocolate'?" Luffy nodded.

"Mm! 'Cause truffles are chocolate, right? So oil from them would be chocolate!" Thatch chuckled at that simple logic.

"Nah. It's not chocolate. These truffles are a type of fungus which grows in the ground. They're very expensive because they can be hard to find, most people use specially bred animals to find them." The dragon frowned, finding the pasta dish less appetizing again. Ace and Sabo privately agreed with their younger brother's opinion. The Fourth just laughed at their sour faces, saying as he went back to grabbing the last of the food platters, "Don't knock it 'til you try it! I'll make some later for you three."

The Trio shrugged, not particularly caring but also not willing to deny the offer of free food. Luffy, fed up with sitting so long and wanting to do _something_ that might help distract him from the buzzing under his skin, moved to depart again.

"Luffy," Sabo warned, also catching his older sibling's gaze to inform Ace he was required to take part as well. Both ravens huffed but conceded to the middle one and, as one, the three stood and faced the now very confused Thatch.

"Thanks for the meal," Ace, Sabo and Luffy intoned; the first two with a small and polite bow while the dragon grinned brightly. The chef stared, feeling kind of lost at the unexpected show of gratitude—last night not counting to him because it was only Sabo and the teen seemed to have a default setting of being polite.

"You're welcome…" Thatch came out of his daze when he noticed the three about to skedaddle. "Wait! Luffy, didn't you eat a couple plates up in the crow's nest?" Lu paused then nodded. The Commander grinned at him. "Would you mind bringing the dishes back down? Unless you need help or can't because…" The Fourth trailed off looking at the boy's rotund middle. _'He looks skinnier than a few minutes ago and compared to when he just finished scarfing everything down. Come to think of it… Luffy wasn't nearly as round when he left with Ace either last night. I thought for sure he wouldn't be able to move before he got up to chase that fireball._ '

"Oh! Woops," the dragon uttered, having completely forgotten about the platters he'd left behind. Or rather, _platter_. Ace and Sabo glanced at their baby brother, wondering at the small spike in apprehension they sensed.

Thatch's eyes bugged when the kid's arm suddenly stretched all the way up to the crow's nest, hazel orbs widening further when the plump pirate's body followed after with an excited 'whoop!' They squinted shut in a wince when Luffy misjudged the angle of approach and smacked into the nest's edge, causing him to bounce and collide with the mast in the center before sliding out of sight into the basket. The older pair of brothers, completely unfazed by the harsh impact, snickered at their sibling's misfortune. Luffy, clutching the only metal serving dish in the crow's nest, jumped back out and fell straight to the ground between his brothers and the Commander.

"Here," he said, holding the dish out to the Fourth.

Taking the solitary serving item, the chef looked between the metal in his hands, the grinning straw hatted teen, and the crow's nest above him. "Where's the other one?"

The dragon bit his lip and shuffled his feet nervously. He didn't want to admit what he'd done— _not normal_ , Humans don't do such a thing and he'd be seen as _weirddifferentfreak!bad_ and that was _no good_ because then these Humans might not want to help his Sun anymore—but this Human had been nice enough to put up with _Atce_ 's moodiness. Maybe Commander Thatchy wouldn't be too upset and angry?

Ace and Sabo narrowed their eyes and stared at the youngest's back. Thatch was concerned they were angry with the smaller pirate but that went away when he caught a glint of apprehension in the grey gaze that flicked to him for a moment. _'So they know and are worried about my reaction_ ,' he thought.

"…ate it…" The chef blinked at the quiet voice.

Looking at the twitchy little pirate, dark orbs hidden under the rim of his yellow-gold hat, the commander frowned. He wiped it away a second later to grin brightly at the nervous teen. "Sorry, what was that, Luffy?"

The dragon stiffened slightly and rubbed his arm, even more anxious at the show of fake cheer when he could smell and sense the confusion and mild fear/worry/dread coming from the Human. Sabo stepped up and pulled his little brother to his left side and slightly behind him. Ace came up and laid a reassuring hand on the younger raven's other shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

Aloud, Sabo answered, "He said that he accidentally ate it."

/( _Accident Didn'tmeanto_ ) Was _oorí'armen_ …/

 _'That would do it_ ,' Ace and Sabo thought.

Luffy, like most dragons they learned, had a weakness for precious metals, specifically: gold, silver, and platinum. Although Ace _had_ seen Lu snag—i.e. stole from an unsuspecting (and very _annoying_ ) street vendor—and then eat a platinum bracelet before, Luffy definitely preferred the former two metals to the latter. Apparently, gold and silver, and to a lesser extent platinum, appealed to dragons not for its monetary value—a wholly Human concept that has no meaning to them—but its biological value. Eating these metals (raw or refined) helped make a dragon's scales more lustrous (and a Drakkón's mane silkier) while adding a small boost in developing new strong scales to replace old or damaged ones. With their little brother already fighting off the urge to Shift, suppressing several instinctual desires (wanting to hunt chief among them), containing his increasing aggression, shielding Ace and Sabo to keep them from being overwhelmed by his own roiling mental state…

Yeah, the older brother duo can understand how a silver platter covered in steak juices would be too good to deny. Any other time, Ace and Sabo would be glaring at the Fourth Commander with suspicion and would've immediately high-tailed it off this damn ship, thinking their little dragon had been the victim of a setup. Since Thatch had such a concerned and worried look on his face after hearing Sabo's answer, and Luffy wasn't sensing any hostility, the blond and older raven doubted that possibility.

"Is…is he—" The chef glanced worriedly between Luffy and the brothers, trying to get his question out but not sure who to direct it to. Finally settling on the tense, Human-shaped dragon, raising his hands up slightly as he took a step toward the Trio, Thatch asked hurriedly, "Ar-are you okay, Luffy?"

Spotting the hands reaching up as if to grab him, scenting the fear coming from the Human—completely absorbed by the two and the negative connection they held in his mind—and wary of the sudden invasion of space, Lu opened his mouth a fractions and hissed a warning. The chef halted, a small tinge of guilt adding itself to the other feelings swirling in him, watching Luffy take a couple steps back. Ace and Sabo close ranks in front of their brother, standing shoulder to shoulder and shielding their Light from Thatch's gaze.

"Crap! Sorry, Luffy," Thatch grimaced. Berating himself for the slip, having acted on instinct to check if the small pirate was _okay_ —just like he would do for any of his other brothers onboard—and completely forgetting that Luffy _hated being touched_. _'Remember Marco's arm? That could've been you, stupid!'_ Turning to Ace, darting looks at the large-bellied boy hiding behind, the commander tried again. "Uh, he'll be fine! Right?! Yeah, j-just out—we have to get it out—Bay! I'll go get Bay!"

Sabo tensed at the name, recalling the bluenette doctor. _'Shit!'_

Ace quickly darted a hand forward to grab the distressed man's sleeve, stopping the other from dashing off. A small burst of flame cut off the other's exit and worked to startle the pompadoured chef into stillness. Luffy couldn't remember who this 'Bay' is but decided that they were someone to avoid since Ace and Sabo gave off a negative vibe at the name.

Thatch stared at the hand in mild shock until Ace let go a few seconds later, the fire going as he did so. Turning back to look at the Trio and seeing how calmly (kind of) they were—at least where Luffy's possible health is concerned—standing there, the youngest raven peeking around Ace's left with guarded eyes. Sabo reached behind settle a hand on his little brother's right shoulder, gently squeezing it when he felt a smaller one clench the back of his shirt. Flames wound around Luffy's arms, Ace trying to settle the twitchy dragon before he got too jumpy and worked up.

"Um… Why aren't you guys freaking out?" _'Their brother just ate a damn_ metal platter _! They should be freaking out more than me!'_

Ace shrugged and answered, "Not the first time, doubt it will be the last." The Fourth blinked at that.

Hazel eyes focused on the hiding raven, trying to see through the fire-user and glimpse inside the over-sized stomach of the dragon. Keeping his gaze on the youngest, the Whitebeard inquired, "So… He'll be okay? He's not gonna get sick or anything bad?" Sabo scoffed, relaxing his form.

"Lu has a strong stomach and is capable of eating virtually anything. A helpful trait when he gets too enthusiastic about eating and inhales any unfortunate tableware."

Recalling how Luffy closed up due to a similar comment from Izou last night, Thatch refrained from making any remarks over the unusualness of one being able to eat large, _metal_ dishes. Taking a deep breath to calm the last of his anxiety, forcing down the niggling worry he still felt, the commander gave the black dragon-child a relieved grin.

"Whew! If you say he'll be fine then I'll believe that." The three just stared, a little surprised at the sudden turn in the older pirate's demeanor. Luffy sidled up between his brothers to get a clearer look. "Don't worry about the plate, Luffy. There's plenty more where that came from so just be careful about not eating them in the future. Wouldn't want to run out of them, now would we?" The dragon responded with a nod, giving a second more firm one and a white smile when Thatch's grin brightened.

The Trio quickly departed after that. Luffy needed space _now_ after that conversation and its emotional ups and downs. Ace ran after Luffy, both heading for the figurehead again, to make sure the dragon didn't try scratching his skin off. Sabo stayed behind long enough to inform Thatch that they'd need to have the rest of their meals up here if they were to stick with yesterday's agreement. An eyebrow rose when the chef heard he would need to start making a separate set of courses for Luffy that were mainly meat-based. The blond looked as if he wanted to say something else but chose to remain silent and headed off to rejoin his siblings. Thatch heaved a sigh, grumbled about teens with too many trust-issues, then left with his dirty dishes for the kitchen.

Once they were dropped off for his division to clean, he would go talk with his own brothers and see if they could make a plan about getting the Trio to loosen up.

* * *

Luffy flitted between perching in one of the crow's nests and sitting on the figurehead.

First Lunch had come and gone, the dragon seated on the helm's roof and reaching down to replace and grab empty platters of meat for full ones. Sabo and Ace didn't even try getting him to eat anything else. The whole meal passed in relative silence, the Commander sitting off to the side and smelling of nerves as he observed them. Like breakfast, Luffy said thanks for the food (not nearly as cheery as earlier though) and rolled himself onto his back to stare up at the sky through the sails and rigging. Second Lunch passed in much the same manner, albeit with Luffy noticeably grumpier and Thatchy and Iz-Iz trying to subtly scrutinize him. Not that they were very successful, he could smell and sense their agitation with his atypical (to them) behavior and that only made the dragon twitchier.

After each meal, in an attempt to temporarily distract himself from how his skin felt like there were insects crawling beneath it, the dragon focused his _ki_ on his stomach. He'd learned by accident some years ago that doing this helped speed up his digestion of food, storing gathered nutrients quickly and efficiently. It also enabled him to move more easily with his stomach shrinking down to a manageable size. Luffy couldn't stand to be still for long right now so lazing in the sun after a meal like he normally would was absolutely out of the question.

He's also now avoiding getting close to any of the Commanders that come to chat with him and his brothers, too keyed up to let a Human he hasn't acknowledged as either _sídna_ or _kynsínya_ near him. That went double—perhaps even triple—for the other _kýn'vráls_ , Captain Whitebeard. Normally he liked being near the Human. He told awesome stories, made Lu feel kinda safe, reminded him of someone(s)—not that he quite understands _who_ , just that the odd feeling he senses in the other Alpha is reminiscent of something he _knows_ he's felt from others before—and most importantly, to the dragon, the Human seemed genuinely interested in adding them to the _sídna_ 'Whitebeard. The problem Luffy is having a hard time with is the fact that Giant Banana-Mustache Man is an Alpha (and a strong one at that).

Three Alphas in a small space like the _Moby Dick_ is _not_ good.

Though their ship was smaller, Lu could still handle being with Ace (despite his brother being a fellow Alpha) at times like this thanks to their bond and close relationship. Yes, he got aggressive and would pick fights with the older teen—one challenge lead to them needing to replace a previous ship they sailed with and traumatized the ex-Spade crew into ensuring Luffy got to explore an island at least once a month—over the smallest of things if Sabo wasn't in time to stop them. But he still loved, respected and implicitly trusted his brother, recognizing the other as the lead Alpha of their tiny family. Luffy had _none_ of that with Captain Whitebeard; the dragon's agitated state made him hyper-sensitive to the other Human Alpha's presence, much worse than he ever felt around his big brother. Not wanting to make a scene—a definite possibility with how out of sorts he is right now—and cause trouble for his siblings (and him), Luffy opted to stay away from the Captain until he was able to spend a solid day in his other form.

 _'Not long, not long_ ,' the dragon mused, the thought repeating itself in a prayer-like chant. Rocking back and forth on the figurehead, the Whispers gently cooing to him, Lu focused inside himself to that part which could sense the island they were headed for. At the speed the ship was sailing, and assuming o bad weather cropped up, the island would be in sight the morning after tomorrow.

"Luffy…" Two hands removed his own from their grip on his forearms.

The pirate blinked, only just realizing he'd been gripping the appendages so tight his claws— _'When did they come out?'_ —were biting into the skin and drawing blood. He grimaced at the slip, not liking he hadn't noticed the slight sting due to the awful prickling sensation traveling all over his body.

"Sorry, _Sávbó_ ," Luffy mumbled, quickly licking the minor wounds to clean the blood and help heal the damage. They'd be gone by nightfall. He shivered at the taste and scent of fresh blood, not minding that it was _his_ ; the _desirewantneed_ to hunt coming to the forefront again. His soft hide practically rippled at the surge and the Human-shaped dragon forced back the struggling appearance of black scales. Lu's already sour mood darkened further as the itch ratcheted to feeling like ants were biting him everywhere while bees buzzed under his flesh.

Luffy growled low in his throat when Sabo kept ahold of his arms, preventing him from trying to scratch at the atrocious feeling enveloping him in the vain hopes of alleviating it. Fire, hot sand, dry beach pine and warm salt wind reached his nose just as he sensed _Atce_ crawl over and sit right behind him, taking Luffy's arms from Sabo and holding them against the dragon's chest. Lu struggled in the hold, snapping and growling until Sabo quickly gave his nose a harsh tap. Stunned, the fourteen-year-old paused in his endeavor long enough to comprehend what he'd just tried to do.

Sinking into his big brother's encircling arms, pushing his back into the muscular and very warm chest, Luffy softly keened in apology and distress. Ace relaxed the tight grip on his skinnier limbs (though not letting go) and drew the dragon closer into the comforting embrace. Lu felt his eldest sibling nuzzle the back of his head before resting his chin atop it, Sabo having flipped the straw hat around to dangle over Lu's front. Sabo, lips remaining closed, smiled gently at him; sapphire eyes filled with the understanding, worry, concern and love the dragon sensed coming from both his siblings. Luffy began to thrum, trying to placate his brothers through the soft sound and vibrations. It swiftly included notes of appreciation when Sabo started massaging the dragon's legs.

"We know your miserable right now, Light. Just please bear with it a little longer," Sabo whispered. Ace squeezed him slightly before loosening up a little, trails of fire adding themselves to soothe the dragon alongside the blond's hands.

Luffy responded with a glum nod. He _hated_ how he had to distance himself from his brothers mentally, throwing up shields and building them thicker and thicker to keep Ace and Sabo from being too affected by his worsening condition. It was worse than how he purposely often kept a physical distance from Ace during these types of episodes in an attempt to offer a buffer between his brother and his own instincts. Closing down on the mental bond— _shrinking_ it, _blocking_ it—to almost nothing is something Luffy essentially abhors, doing so only out of necessity for his siblings' health. The sensation is too close to the isolation he'd been forced through when a hatchling.

"It's gonna be okay, _Lú_." Ace's body grew warmer and the dragon snuggled closer, soaking up the physical warmth to make up for the lack against his mind.

* * *

Sabo quietly sat against the rail lining the main deck, petting a sulky Stefan's head—Lu refused to play with the large dog; too afraid he might hurt or maybe even eat his new friend (though both older brothers had serious doubts about the latter being an issue)—in consolation, while waiting for a grumpy Ace to enact his latest assassination attempt. The fourth one today. The blond rolled his eyes at that.

Ace may have been completely gung-ho about his goal to off Captain Whitebeard in the very beginning but his more recent endeavors had been…lacking. With the exception of today, of course; however, that could be attributed to the bleed-over from their bond with Lu. Or, it could be due to Luffy nearly squeezing the mental connection the three shared to a bare trickle. Honestly, it's likely a combination of the two and Sabo could sympathize with his older sibling's frustration. Even the blond was starting to get grouchy despite actively shielding his mind (preventing any flow of his own negative emotions to Lu and vice-versa) and also trying to radiate a sense of calm and peace to his two brothers. An effort to help the dragon that was only mildly successful, seeing as Ace hadn't been trying quite as hard on his end after Sabo told the other to do so too. Then again, Ace had always been more dependent on the _áżda_ than the top-hatted sibling (whether the fire-happy teen was aware of it or not), so this wasn't a real shocker to him. It was still annoying, though.

/( _Exasperated_ ) Charcoal-for-brains, hurry up already. You are moving slower than a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk./ He smirked upon feeling Ace come to a mental standstill. Glancing up from under the rim of his hat, Sabo caught the older teen (currently hiding atop the mainmast's lowest sail's yard) sending him a baffled 'what the fuck' look.

/( _Confused irritated_ ) I know you're insulting me, ass. But what the hell is a terra-pull-gastro-thing?/

A small spike of interest from Lu (camped out on the port-side yardarm to the sail Ace is using) made Sabo tilt his head up to see the dragon-boy perched almost directly above him, head canted slightly to the side. The blond smiled as he replied to his brothers' query with the image of a snail. Luffy immediately started snickering while Ace silently spluttered and fumed in his hiding place.

/( _Impatient Irritated_ ) Just _wait_ until we get to that island! You are _so_ toast! /

The blond countered with a mental impression of Ace, sporting a pair of cat ears, whiskers and a tail, hissing cutely while a _much_ taller Sabo calmly patted him placatingly on the head. Luffy burst out laughing and fell backwards to dangle from the wooden beam, Sabo joining in his younger brother's show of mirth from his spot next to the rail. They only laughed harder when Ace seemed to puff up and began hurling curses at the blond and Sabo responded with the previous image of Ace (except making the cat-tail puffy).

In-between tries of getting air into his lungs before losing it again in a peal of laughter, Sabo caught many of the surrounding Whitebeards (and the Captain himself) looking over at him and Lu questioningly. Those gazes quickly turned to concern and alarm and the blond figured the older pirates must've taken note of his little brother's precarious (to the Whitebeard Pirates) position. Stefan also let out a small whine of worry, eyes fixed on the dangling dragon. Sabo quietly shushed the huge hound, telling the other that Luffy is fine and not in any real danger (he's not far enough out to be hanging over the sea and will simply bounce should he fall to the deck).

Ace apparently chose that moment to make a diving attack on Whitebeard, a fist cocked back and coated in flame.

Sabo sighed and began tugging off his boots and coat. If this went like the previous try, there's a good chance his stubborn brother will be taking a swim.

* * *

Luffy tracked his brother's passage through the air, calm with the knowledge that Waves had already gotten ready to fetch the other should it be necessary. Which it was.

Quickly scuttling to the very end of the yardarm, catching Sparkles and Mini-Mustache tossing a ladder in the corner of his eye, the dragon waited for his Treasures to pop back up. A phantom urge to twitch his tail hit him, back muscles spasming, before being roughly shoved aside. Using their bond to monitor his big brothers, Luffy kept himself calm until they finally broke the sea's surface. A line was tossed out to them (a quick check showing that it was Mini-Mustache who'd done it) and they were pulled over to the ladder.

Something caught his attention in the water beyond the bow. Listening to his siblings bicker below him as Sabo climbed the ladder carrying Ace, Luffy turned his head to eye the surrounding waves ahead. He furrowed his brow, wondering if it had just been some sunlight reflecting off a wave's crest.

At a prod from Waves, the dragon refocused on the two below. Hunching down a little and leaning toward them, he called out, "Three points for the flight plus two for style 'cause Ace did a flip. Ten for the landing and seven for splash."

"What are you—"

"Why a ten, Lu? Quit struggling, Ember-Head!"

"Belly flop, duh!" Giant Banana-Mustache laughed loudly at his answer.

Again, Luffy spotted something off the bow of the ship. Sitting up a tad from his hunkered crouch, he surveyed the sea.

Below his perch, the dragon heard Mini-Mustache Man mutter, "That explains the 'smack' I heard…"

A 'thud' followed by Ace cursing informed the youngest that this brothers had at last reached the deck. Lu, still trying to find whatever had caught his eye, barely paid the snarking duo any mind.

"The hell? I ain't a damn bag of potatoes, Waves!"

"You are perfectly correct. Tubers would not give me a difficult time trying to fish them out of the damn ocean! I reckon a sack of them would weigh less than your fire-retardant ass, too!"

Oh, there! Something shimmered!

"Nerd! You're just upset that you got a little wet!" Luffy sat up a bit straighter, trying to get a fix on the shiny thing in the water.

"That water is fucking _cold_ , dammit! Thanks to a certain ash-headed nincompoop and his stubborn, over-inflated ego I had to go swimming in said freezing water _twice_!"

The dragon's eyes narrowed when he saw a tail breach the surface. He wriggled in place, suddenly very excited over the idea of prey…the chance to hunt…

"I can fix that right now…do you prefer 'well-done'? I'm thinkin' 'extra-crispy'!"

"How about I just toss you overboard and watch you sizzle?"

A rumble of anticipation flowed from the fledgling's chest. Licking his lips, Luffy lunged.

* * *

Kingdew and Jiru were standing back by Pops and watching the spectacle that was the brawling/wrestling Ace and Sabo. Stefan (holding Sabo's hat and collecting Ace's), Jozu and Vista made the smart decision to back away or risk getting hit by a wayward punch. Or being bowled over when the duo rolled around. Several of the watching pirates were cheering one or the other on, exchanging bets on who would win the scuffle. Rakuyo stepped out on deck, scowled at the cause of the ruckus (figuring the young hothead had attacked Pops _again_ ), then made his way over to the giant captain's chair.

Newgate was distracted from the roughhousing when a yellowish object fell from the yard above to land near his dog. At the same time, a small blur struck the rail beyond Sabo and Ace before speeding off towards the ship's bow. The two brothers paused at the rapid appearance and departure of the presence, staring at one another in confusion. Those around the duo were equally off-kilter and silent, taken aback by the sudden spike of killing-intent before it faded. Seconds after the small pirate's entrance and exit, Sabo and Ace paled as realization hit them.

" _Shit_ , Luffy!" They cried, scrambling to their feet and then racing after the younger teen.

Vista, snapping out of his daze first, immediately took off to catch up with the Trio. Jiru joining him a second later. Both commanders wondered at the speed being shown by the Trio, the swordsman automatically recalling how Sabo managed to outpace him and reach his brothers just as the Fifth made it to the deck several days ago. It didn't help that most of their fellows were still in a muddled daze at the swift turn of events, impeding Jiru and Vista's progress.

Whitebeard's yellow gaze widened in shock and concern when he spotted the smallest of the Trio jumping overboard. The sound of a small splash knocked the other pirates out of their stupor. The commanders, followed by their captain at a slower pace, started running for the point where Strawhat had jumped in. The Fifth and Fourteenth Commanders, thankful that their siblings had finally cleared the way for them, were just in time to see Sabo diving over the side. Ace stood on the wooden rail, tense and fists ablaze. More splashes were heard, like something large was struggling, along with colorful curses.

Jiru, being faster than the swordsman commander, reached Fire-Fist first. Stretching an arm out, hoping to grab the teen before he could fall back into the sea, the reaching hand snatched nothing but air. Vista, watching his fellow closing in on Ace, saw the teen smirk and _jump_ before Jiru could even touch him. Whitebeard, concern growing after seeing all three siblings leap into the sea (two of which were Devil Fruit eaters), slowed his approach when a large blast vibrated the ship. A plume of steam erupted from the Trio's point of disappearance, quickly trailed by a few more vibrating booms that caused more towering plumes of steam. Two long shouts of surprise (and perhaps…fear?) accompanied with a loud growl were preceded by a final large boom, the resulting cloud of hot vapor mixing with the previous ones and settling across the deck.

The Whitebeard Pirates froze when something…some _things_ hit the deck just a few yards in front of where Newgate, Rakuyo and Kingdew stood. Vista and Jiru turned to eye what had landed on their ship, having some difficulty seeing until the surrounding vapor cleared. The commanders and captain relaxed when they sensed the Trio's presence but stiffened when they heard something large flopping around and growling.

There was a pained moan followed by, "Sab, you're heavy. Get off me."

"Dammit, Ace! I _told_ you not to do that shit!" Jiru winced at the harsh sound of a fist meeting flesh.

"The hell," Ace gasped out, leading Kingdew to suspect the blond had targeted the fire-user's stomach. "Wha's that for, ya lump of seafoam? It worked didn't it?" Another punch. "Ow! Stop hitting me!"

"You almost blew us up!"

The breeze cleared the last traces of mist, allowing the pirates to see a dripping Sabo sitting on an equally wet Ace with his hands fisted in the other's shirt. The dark brunet was sprawled across the ground looking very tired— _'Probably from consecutive dips in the sea_ ,' Kingdew thought—and had a pleased grin on his face.

"Technically," Fire-Fist's grin broadened, "I _did_ blow us up." Rakuyo turned away when he saw the blond's expression morph from a scowl to a deceptive calm.

Releasing Ace's shirt, Sabo gracefully stood from his seat on the fire-teen's hips. Casting a brief glance at the older sibling, Vista grimaced when the blond planted a foot in the other's gut while walking away with a mutter of "damned idiot". Ace flailed at the abuse, curling up to clutch his stomach and falling over onto his side, grumbling breathy curses at Sabo's back. Rakuyo followed the blond's movements and blinked in surprise, jaw dropping to the floor, as he finally acknowledged where the growling and loud thumps (which had been going on the entire time) originated from. Whitebeard, however, had been watching the source with great amusement since the mist cleared.

Luffy, growling all the while, had his arms encircling the neck of his prize, legs wrapped about the middle behind the dorsal fin, teeth sunk into the skin next to the gills of a catfish. A silvery _large_ catfish. A massive, nearly twelve-foot-long, fat catfish that was grunting and flopping around wildly as it tried to dislodge the clingy, little pirate. Whitebeard noticed how, despite the fish repeatedly slamming him into the deck, Luffy never cringed or released the creature.

 _'Either he has a high pain threshold or the attacks aren't effective against him_.' The captain wouldn't be too surprised if it turned out to be the former reason, given the older pair of brothers.

"Somebody get Thatch," Vista called out. He recognized that fish; long black whiskers tipped with white, silvery coloring that faded to shimmery white on the belly, black spots decorating the tail and fluke… "Now!"

A speckled silver catfish. A rare, sea-going species that have really sweet meat and could grow to huge sizes (the one Luffy's riding being relatively medium-sized). Special slime to lock in moisture, strong pectoral fins and an extra set of lungs that allowed them to breathe air meant they could travel across land or stay out of the water if they got trapped somewhere (such as on a beach or in a pool running out of air/food). Speckled silvers are also a pain to catch, not just due to how rare they are, but because of the nasty, venomous spines/barbs they sported and their armor-plated heads. Two small barbs were attached to the edge of each gill-plate, the front of the pectoral fins ended in a sharp spine, a large one followed by four smaller ones comprised the bony ribs of the dorsal fin, and the top of the fish's fluke included a final partially-hidden spine. Paralytic in nature, the venom is very strong and able to paralyze creatures twice the catfish's size. It also had the horrid side-effect of causing any wound inflicted by the fish's barbs to become infected thanks to the bacteria on the barbs/spines and the creature's slimy coating. The bony, tough heads were useful for ramming and stunning prey or predator, contributing nicely to the catfish's notoriety for being an aggressive creature.

And the Little One is currently playing rodeo with the dangerous thing.

Seeing Vista's grim face, Rakuyo wandered over (avoiding the flailing beast) to see what had upset his brother. The Seventh paled when he received the news.

"Can we no' tell him ta let go? Grab him real quick once ee does?" At the look Vista shot him, the dread-haired blond clarified, "No' us! I mean' either Fire-Fist or the other one!"

"I don't think even _I'm_ fast enough to reach him before the fish can stab him," Jiru added from the side. "That's if the little growler doesn't get distracted by me getting close or turning on me the second he finds out someone other than his siblings is touching him. I don't have Marco's healing abilities."

Kingdew, having sidled nearer to the other commanders to catch pieces of their conversation and to get a better view of the small, crazy brat wrestling a huge catfish, frowned at what he'd heard. To him, it sounded as if it were only a matter of time before the crazy child gets hit by one of those barbs. True, the brat is doing a great job of holding on no matter how the fish flops back and forth and seems to be consciously avoiding letting any of his skin near a spine. However, the fish doesn't appear to be tiring (though neither does the kid) and none of them can attack the beast without risking the kid's safety. Jozu shifting off to the side of Pops catches Kingdew's attention, giving the commander an idea that he hopes will work. The Third Commander notices Kingdew gesture at him then at the fish-rodeo occurring before them.

Whitebeard watches his son mime instructions to the diamond-Paramecia out of the corner of his eye, keeping his yellow gaze firmly on the Trio. The two older siblings are strangely at ease, calmly observing the "precious little brother" they're normally over-protective of wrestling with a giant and dangerous animal. They don't approach bucking fish and its unwanted passenger, only moving to get out of the way should it frenzied flopping carry it too close. What's more, Ace and Sabo are wearing smiles that are of an indulgent disposition.

Thatch comes up next to the giant captain's side, swearing under his breath at finding Luffy latched onto a giant catfish. _'A fish that obviously want to_ eat _him_ ,' the Fourth silently moaned, seeing the large animal make several attempts to bite the human clutching it as it twists and flops around.

Jozu maneuvers to the opposite side of Ace and Sabo, hoping that once he grabs hold of the stupid fish they'll grab the imp. Ace glances up from his baby brother, fixing grey orbs on the older pirate's suspicious movement. From behind and to the side of the young fire-user, Jiru sees the freckled teen's fists clench at his sides. When Jozu moves a little closer to the raging fish, Sabo tenses and lifts his head to make visual sweeps of the area. Both Vista and Thatch see small traces of flame flickering along Ace's arms and Sabo barely holding one of his own slightly further from his body, fingers curling a fraction, when Jozu takes another careful step in Luffy's shifting direction.

"Pops, tell Jozu to stop. I know he wants to help but he's going to have two very pissed and defensive brothers after him, with a third when Luffy finds out."

"The rambunctious brat is going to get hurt if we wait, my son. I would rather face the three's ire than risk the runt's health," came the quiet rumble. Thatch nodded hesitantly, agreeing with his father's choice but not comfortable with the method.

"I get that, Pops, but Luffy has been acting really weird today and Ace and Sabo have been arguing with each other more." The chef left out how he'd accidentally caught Luffy biting Ace (not hard enough to draw blood but pretty damn close from how Ace swore up a storm) not too long ago after what looked like some type of silent argument between the two. "Honestly, before Jozu started sneaking around, this is the most relaxed I've seen Ace and Sabo so far today."

"You have a better idea." Newgate could tell his son was thinking of some alternative. Nodding to confirm his captain's statement, Thatch waited for the other's decision.

Seeing the Third trying to get another step closer to the flailing fish—speckled silvers were too damn hardy for their own good—the pompadoured man added, "Vista's also interested in Sabo's knives, saying that they're of an odd material he isn't certain about but thinks he's seen somewhere. Sabo's really fast on the draw with them and, without knowing what they're made of, I don't want to pit them against Jozu's Fruit."

Whitebeard followed the younger pirate's hazel gaze to the barely curled, gloved fingers…that looked about two seconds (or two of his son's steps) away from twitching a blade into their grasp. Folding his massive arms across his chest, Newgate gave a discrete nod to Thatch's request. Breathing out a relieved sigh, the chef strode forward to the older pair of the Trio (making sure they could hear his steps and sense his approach) while motioning for Jozu to get back.

Most of the watching pirates visibly startled when a ring of flames sprouted up, surrounding the three brothers (and fish). The only ones who didn't noticeably react were Whitebeard, Vista and Thatch. Jozu jumped away from the sudden heat that formed inches from his face, listening to his siblings shout in surprise at the appearance. Thatch wanted to chuckle when he noticed the part near him was merely warm and only a few feet high before the fiery ring snuffed out a second later.

Chuckling at the Third nearly losing his beard, the chef sauntered over to the watchful pair. Conscious of the calculating blue orbs tracking him (thankful the knife he'd seen as the fire went up was no longer in the teen's hand), he stage whispered conspiratorially, "Try going for the beard next time. Diamond-Butt is very _anal_ about maintaining it." Ace cracked a smirk, a mischievous gleam in his grey eyes, and Sabo's lips twitched into a ghost of the same look. All in all, the Fourth counted it as a win.

Ace went back to keeping an eye on the smaller teen, leaving Sabo to deal with Thatch. "Need something, Fourth?"

"Ah, yeah. Dinner's gonna be ready soon and," he glanced meaningly at the rodeo show going on, "we're concerned about Luffy's…situation." Ace tilted his head at the last word.

"What situation?" Thatch stared at the two, then the crazy kid clinging to the dangerous fish, then back to the (equally) crazy older siblings.

"Uuuh…" The chef dumbly pointed at the aforementioned scene. "That one?"

At this, both brothers turned to stare at him like the commander had a second head. Several quiet seconds later (broken only by the floundering, pissed catfish and the growling Luffy) the two ex-captains grinned before outright laughing like Thatch had just told some grand joke. It was kind of creepy how in-sync their actions were.

"Lu's fine," Sabo chuckled, waving off the surrounding pirates' concerns for the energetic shrimp.

Ace snorted at the disbelieving face Thatch knew he showed at the blond's lack of worry. "Our baby brother has fought tougher things than some stupid fish." Vista stared at the two's nonchalance. Newgate raised an eyebrow at the casual delivery of the comment.

Taking a step forward, Jiru asked, "You two _do_ know _what_ fish that thing is, right?"

"Speckled silver catfish. Possesses several barbs that excrete a numbing, paralytic venom and is an active hunter with an aggressive temperament," Sabo promptly started listing off, sounding like he was reading an entry from an encyclopedia. "Have armored heads used for defense as well as stunning prey via ramming before swallowing them whole. Males have been known to grow as big as eighteen feet in length and weighing 1,200 pounds. Females to twenty-two feet and weighing around 1,400 pounds. The belly on Lu's catch is white, therefore he is playing with an approximately 700-pound male. There are also occasional claims reporting large individuals attacking small sailing vessels or fishing boats and devouring the passengers aboard." The blond turned to peer at the Whitebeard Commander with a silent question of 'does that satisfy you?' on his face.

The Whitebeard Pirates stared dumbfounded at the teen's off-hand display of background knowledge. Thatch rubbed his chin, fingering the goatee a little, as he considered what had been said. _'Never heard about 'em attacking boats… Where would he find out about that?'_

When he asked as much, Ace shrugged and replied, "We were looking for something." The Fourth huffed at the non-answer.

Vista caught Sabo flicking his eyes from Whitebeard, to Thatch, to Jozu, to Little One, a smirk slowly blooming on his peach lips. What surprised him was the appearance of a similar expression on the freckled sibling's face a scant few seconds later. "You know…" Everyone turned to eye Sabo, an uneasy feeling slithering down their spines at the glint in his blue orbs. "If you're _that_ worried about whether our little Lu can handle a simple fish," the blond pointed at suddenly wary Jozu, " _he_ can try to take the fish away from Luffy."

No. Jozu did _not_ like the look on the blond Liar's face. It was too close to how the lying brat looked when tricking the Third into allowing the Liar and Imp escape that first day.

"Okay," the Head Chef grinned. Jozu scowled at the younger commander, silently vowing to get even for this (including the scheming Liar into his thoughts of revenge). Several of the division members near him backed away when they spied an ominous aura emanating from the diamond-Paramecia commander.

"Fine," the Third Commander growled.

Ace flashed a cheeky grin that froze Thatch's previously warm expression. "Oi, _Lú_. Mr. Sparkles wants to take your food!"

* * *

The dragon was enjoying wrestling with his prey, letting it fight him rather than ending things quickly. He didn't want to end it quickly. Wanted to keep it going for as long as possible to stave off the clamoring need to Shift and hunt more. To have his scales coating him like a second skin as he sank his claws into freshly acquired food, still warm with the fading echoes of life. Ship-food tasted fine and all, but it lacked the sense of fulfillment he experienced from taking down his own prey. Like his need to Shift and spend a prolonged amount of time in his other form, Luffy's desire (need) to hunt would also grow over time. It's just his unfortunate luck that both needs grew to a peak at the same time; one exacerbating the other with both being compounded by the stress of being forced into an unfamiliar environment.

So, when he finally had the chance to alleviate a fraction of one of those two needs via the tasty fish in his grasp—with the added bonus of said fish being one of his Top 10 Tasty Sea-Creatures to Eat—only to hear _Atce_ 's shout… Yeah. Saying the dragon is unhappy would be an understatement. He already felt upset that the fish was weakening in its struggles, not overly noticeable to watchers but Luffy could feel its strength waning. _Now_ , he learns that someone wanted to take the spoils of his hunt from him. That is a big _no_!

When the fish next bucked to try slam him down onto the deck, the dragon growled slightly louder at seeing Sparkles coming closer. _'No no no no! Mine!'_

He bit down harder, more warm blood mixed with fishy oils sliding across his tongue, and at the same time squeezed his legs tighter around the fish's back. The catfish, spurred on by the increase of pain, leapt and thrashed its tail wildly to the side. Luffy felt the fluke smack solidly against one of the large Human's legs, easing up on his grip to entice the fish to flop so he could see the potential thief better. His glee at making the other stumble was short-lived when the Commander came after him again.

Moving from the previous bite site to one closer to the top of the gill-plate, he sunk sharp teeth into the soft skin. He almost groaned from the taste of fresh blood, though he did wrinkle his nose at the icky, bitter slime that accompanied it. Flexing his fingers, letting the nails become small claws, he dug his digits into the flesh beneath them. Extremely disliking the second round of intense pain, the poor catfish raised its head before slamming it down with the tail coming up behind. With the tail in the air, Luffy used his legs to wrench it around so that it would hit the big Human in the stomach this time. He shifted to accommodate for the impact's recoil on the fish, not wanting to get stuck by one of the stupid venom-leaking spines. He'd already gone through that once or twice and he is _not_ keen on repeating the unpleasant experience.

He grinned, mouth bloody, upon hearing the Commander curse as he staggered. The fish might be smaller than the big Human but Luffy knows that small things can still be very strong. Predatory fish are also generally one massive muscle so they usually pack a wallop when striking someone. Soon enough, the dragon felt the deck vibrate as heavy thuds announced the closing distance between him and the stubborn, large Commander Sparkles.

"Lu, don't break the spines! I need those!" The dragon growled a grumble but acquiesced to Sabo's _request_ , aborting his next plan of attack…which would've likely resulted in the tail barb being snapped off.

Knowing the fish wouldn't last much longer, its last couple of flails holding less power than even a minute ago (then again, he _had_ been using it as a weapon), Luffy decided to make one last go at getting mean Sparkles to keep away from his prey. Shifting down to the fish's back a bit more, wary of the dorsal, he stretched his neck to bite into the muscle directly behind the upper bottom half of the fish's gills. Running his fingers down to stop directly off to his sides, also stretching the limbs to reach the animal's belly, he gave a quick squeeze to make the fish lurch backwards a couple feet. As soon as the body hit, Luffy gave another tight squeeze of his legs and pulled the fish around to face Commander Sparkles. He took a moment to watch the Human's face contort to an expression depicting dawning dread, before enacting his 'master plan'.

Not wasting a second to avoid the potential thief dodging the close-range attack, Luffy got the flopping fish under him to panic. All at once, clawed fingers dug into the supple belly skin to pierce the muscle, arms and legs clamped around the animal's neck and back to strangle airflow and movement, then sharpened teeth thrust further into the spot right behind the gill. The silvery catfish grunted loudly in pained protest as it jerked its body up and forward in a high flail. The dragon used its stranglehold to direct the abrupt flight so that the bony head would collide with the huge Commander's.

A jarring strike later, Luffy is grinning happily (teeth still stuck in the catfish's neck) and making pleased rumbles. Sparkles is on the ground glaring at him (not that Lu cares) after having been rammed by a pissed, 700-pound fish. The dragon is only mildly disappointed that the other's sparkly defensive actions saved the Commander from having both a concussion and broken jaw/nose. Still…

 _'Human got run over by a fishy~ It knocked Sparkles on his tail~!'_ Lu decided to share his little sing-song chant with his brothers. The dazed fish flailed half-heartedly, trying to recover from the dragon's abusive actions.

He heard them laugh as Commander Sparkles got up and growled, "I'm done. The imp can play 'rodeo clown' with the damn fish." Luffy released the flesh in his mouth, Shifting the sharp bones back to those of a Human's, to stick his tongue out at the mean Commander (he's still upset at the larger male for grabbing him a while ago).

"Oi, Lu!" The dragon swung his head to look questioningly at _Atce_. "Chef says dinner's ready so finish up." /Fish is yours since you caught it./

Nodding, Luffy waited for the latest tired flail to cease. He was going to end it anyway after fending off the potential Human thief. He's not cruel and wouldn't want the animal to suffer longer than necessary. A slow, painful death is not something he would lightly wish upon anything. The fish would've been dead long before now if he could use his other form; since he can't, he gave the animal an opportunity to fight and weaken itself to make killing it easier. Punching a wildly flailing fish with barbs is not recommended; it took one instance to learn that lesson and take it to heart.

When the catfish paused for rest, he quickly let go and leapt into the air above the fish's huge head. Cocking his right fist back, gathering _kí_ to reinforce the limb's structure and strengthen the hand's skin, bones and muscles (though not enough to cause the skin to develop the dark, armor-like coating), Luffy slammed his fist down between the catfish's wide-set eyes. "Bullet!"(*)

A full-body shudder pulsed once through the sea-creature before going slack.

* * *

Marco was drawn out of his room, where he'd been working on some reports, due to all the commotion on-deck. Slipping through the crowd to Pops' side, he was shocked to see little Strawhat Luffy _riding_ a giant damn fish. Even more shocked when the First Commander realized, via whispers from his siblings and a flash of jagged spines on the animal's fins, that the shrimp is riding a potentially _deadly_ fish…and _Ace_ and _Sabo_ are actually _letting him_. Then the shrimp, somehow making it look like an act of careful planning, has Jozu _run over by the fish_.

Yeah, even he had to laugh at the sheer amount of surprise and disbelief coloring his friend's face at that one. They were not going to let the Third forget this incident for a long time to come. (His family would willingly ignore said fish's size for this tease-worthy material.)

Finally, to stun everyone watching, the kid jumps in the air with a fist raised (arm oddly looking longer than it should be for a second) before thrusting down towards the thick bony plate beneath him. This time Marco can very clearly see the arm stretching to cover the extra yard of distance. What everyone (sans Ace, Sabo, and obviously Luffy) expected was for Strawhat's fist to either break against the hard surface, bounce off painfully, or maybe dent/crack the plating. Yeah, the fourteen-year-old might be strong, but that catfish's armor is _thick_ and specifically designed to handle blunt-force trauma.

Which is why Ace and Sabo began laughing at the stunned faces taking in the aftermath of Luffy's (fairly weak) attack. Releasing a few chuckles of his own after a few seconds, taking in the way Strawhat Runt was staring at his handiwork with a sense of accomplishment, Kingdew left to go below. He had a report to finish if he wanted an early night tonight. Several other pirates, finding the show essentially over, also departed (though decent-sized crowd still remained, too stunned to move yet).

Luffy was checking over his handy-work, pleased that his control had gotten better…meaning he didn't punch a fist-sized hole through the fish's head and continue into the deck. Pulling his hand out of the skull—noting the deep cracks spreading out from the impact site and resolving to further refine the technique to make the hit cleaner—Lu stood up and looked over at his big brothers.

Casually flicking his hand to rid it of some of the brain-matter and blood clinging to it, the dragon glanced down at the dead prey beneath his feet then back up at the chuckling pair. /( _ExcitedPleasedContent EatnowYes?_ ) I get first bite! Need to bleed or fine?/

The commanders, captain and several of the other Whitebeards viewing the brat standing proudly atop his quarry's head notice how Luffy doesn't seem all that phased by the blood staining his lips, face and front. Or that the brat's right hand is still dripping blood, the small flick of the appendage only dislodging fragments of skull, skin and brain. It's a disquieting sight to the vast majority of division members watching and insightful to the crew's commanding officers. That Ace and Sabo aren't visually reactive to the younger's appearance also hints that seeing the kid like this isn't uncommon.

"You can eat after Ace gives it a quick toasting, Lu." The warm look in the blond sibling's eyes gains a mischievous glimmer as he adds, "I do not appreciate my bedmate having fish-slime-breath." Ace pauses for a heartbeat and solidly nods in agreement to Sabo's comment as he continues striding over to the dragon.

Most of the surrounding pirates (with the exception of Marco and Whitebeard) blush and splutter, or imitate gaping fish, at the implications of those words. Several betters shifted their previous stances to align with one of the "inappropriate relationship" camps in the ongoing betting pool.

Casting a light flame across the body, Ace quickly dried out the slime so that he and Sabo could grab the fish…and Lu could stop giving him puppy-eyes. "We'll take it to the back and clean it there," the freckled brother replied to Luffy's earlier inquiry. They would be out of the way there and their little brother could eat in peace. Plus, Sabo will make a mess trying to get to the damn thing's glands and Ace has never been overly fond of watching the process or the smell. He'll go and grab some containers from their _temporary_ room instead.

Sabo, meanwhile, checked the head to ascertain whether the dragon's attack might've damaged the venom glands tucked under the cheek muscles. "Good job, Lu, you're getting better. The left might be ruptured, hard to tell, but the right should be unharmed." Thatch blinked to lessen the glare from Luffy's radiant smile at the praise.

Rakuyo gaped when the two brothers, on either side of the fish, lifted it up with no discernable difficulty. The dragon moved to sit just in front of the dorsal fin, leaning over to take a bite out of fish's side as the older teens began ferrying the body through the parting crowd. As Luffy continued taking bites out of the fish, trusting his brothers to watch things while _he_ enjoyed the spoils of a successful hunt, the observing pirates snapped out of their stunned stupor.

"That's gross," Jiru and Rakuyo mumbled. Vista nodded, lips twisting in mild disgust, beside them. Jozu gave a disturbed grunt at the unpleasant sight.

Mutters of disgust and revulsion at seeing Strawhat munching on a freshly-killed fish—either not caring or just ignorant about the blood dribbling down his chin—with a smile on his face. Shivers went down some of the pirates' spines. Words of "not normal", "weird", "sickening" and others passed around. A few commented that they could understand why the Trio's old crew spoke the way they did about the youngest.

"Too strong, he is. Acts and eats like a little beasty, too. Is no wonder they called Strawhat Runt 'a little monster'," someone from the Third Division grumbled. Nauseated agreement met the man.

Newgate felt torn between the need to berate his children and concern for what he is seeing. Ace and Sabo, apparently more aware of the rising volume of voices than their dining brother, were quickening their pace in an attempt to get away from the crowd faster. As they weren't doing anything about the Little Brat eating raw fish, in addition to the practiced-looking routine and conversation, he could conclude that such behavior is normal on Strawhat's part. The Blond and Fire Brats' switches between glaring at the people around them and flicking worried eyes to the ignorant brat atop the fish also spoke to the captain.

Marco and Thatch were trying to get their brothers to shut up and disperse (quietly, because they don't want the shrimp realizing what's going on), having noted the same details their adoptive father had. Unlike him, however, they knew better (or at least possessed a better _notion_ ) about how Luffy might react to the negative atmosphere. Whitebeard and Vista, aware of the two commanders' rising tension at the scene and their methods, also start helping. Newgate's more successful at getting his sons to listen but none of them can prevent the others from staring and whispering.

The dragon halted half-way into taking another chunk of sweet meat, teeth already sunk deep and severing the section from the rest of the muscle. A scent comparable to the bitter taste of lime peels coming from his brothers. Why were they afraid? What were they worried about? Vista is the first to find out that Little One has stopped eating, now staring questioningly at the two ex-captains carrying his 'seat' at the very edge of the crowd.

Sabo glances up at Luffy and smiles. /( _Calmcalm Don'tworry_ ) It's okay, Light. You're alright./ The younger raven doesn't listen.

That smile is _supposed_ to be reassuring. Comforting. An expression any other person would see and believe instantly with no qualm or reason to doubt. Lu _knows_ his Treasure, though.

All the fledgling sees are the tight corners that make the gesture look more forced than it should be; tense cheeks trying to hold the stretched lips and keep the 'smile' in place. Blue eyes avoiding meeting his near-obsidian ones directly, appearing too hard and cool, are the dead-giveaway.

Pulling his latest mouthful from the carcass, the dragon checks Ace to find his oldest sibling in much the same state. It's easier to see the falsity in his face than Waves', who's the best liar and deceiver between the three. It would still fool anyone who didn't know Ace. Didn't know his tells. Like Sabo, the person would only see the— _very real_ , there is no falseness to the emotions they are trying to convey to him—comfort and 'everything is okay' being shown. But the lips are stiff, a touch too many teeth being shown, the smile slightly too wide…and grey refuses to touch black. The tiny pricks of flame sparking along _Atce_ 's skin also reveal him.

/( _Finefinefine Safe Okay_ )/ Ace projects to his baby brother. Luffy's frame has finally lost some of its pent-up tension thanks to this "hunting" stint. His little dragon can enjoy the rush of catching and eating fresh prey like he wants to do. He _doesn't_ need to realize what's going on. Their Lu _can't_ realize.

The fledgling's eyes narrow at the mental supposed-to-be-calming-but-somehow-isn't nudge from his his big brother. No. His brothers aren't _lying_ or being outright deceptive, per se… However, they _are_ trying to hide something from the young dragon.

Jozu, from his vantage above most of his ship-siblings' heads, spies the imp frowning darkly at whatever he finds in the Liar and Fire-Fist's faces. Something has clearly upset Luffy's precious brothers and the dragon doesn't like that. They should be _happy_ , not this weird _worriedfearfuldesperateupset_ he senses. Jiru, trying to get his adopted family to quiet and leave, looks up to see Luffy, body tensed to fight on his meal-turned-seat, raise his head to find the pirates staring at the Trio and loudly whispering rude comments and words.

Luffy stiffens, sensing the negativity directed at the dragon and his Treasures. It takes another moment to hear the words. To find the target of the negative emotions and speech is not Ace and Sabo and Luffy but just only _Luffy_. The bite of meat feels heavy on his tongue, almost choking him as he swallows.

Newgate feels a swell of anger and disappointment towards his sons' over how the cheeky runt's demeanor changes.

All the fight that had been building up in the teen, stored behind that stormy frown, vanishes. In its wake is a small face with wide eyes, features rapidly shifting from confusion to comprehension and understanding…finally plummeting into absolute dejection. The dragon fledgling shrinks into himself and Thatch can almost _see_ the little puppy-tail and ears curl in. Jiru didn't know an already small kid could make himself seem so much smaller while Rakuyo felt a pang of guilt at the way he'd viewed the brat barely a couple minutes ago.

Ace and Sabo were trying to kill people with twin glares while using the bond attempting to soothe and assure their baby brother. Luffy wasn't responding and they could only sense a deepening shadow enveloping the other's mind, the dragon having instinctively blocked them to prevent Ace and Sabo from being overwhelmed. When their Light, head tucked down close to his chest and eyes squeezed shut, flinched at hearing the word "monster" spoken again, Ace snapped.

Fire roars outwards, sending the remaining onlookers and the unfortunately-too-close scrambling to keep from getting burned. At the same instant, both the blond and fire-wielder bellowed at the offenders, "SHUT-UP, YOU DAMN BASTARDS!"

Having spent the most time around them, the First, Fourth, and Fifth Commanders are amazed Sabo is capable of being as loud as Ace. He's shouted around them before and also yelled on several occasions, of course. However, in the Trio he is often the quieter sibling and the one who calms and tempers the other two. That Sabo's icy anger can somehow hold the same heat as Ace's fiery temper is unsettling because, although they've _seen_ the younger blond's rage, it was never like _this_.

 _"We don't call them that when they're around…"_

"Fuck," Marco sighs, feeling as if he were dunked in cold seawater.

Thatch, seeing his older adopted brother pale and jerk to a standstill, heads over to see what happened. Vista joins them and listens as Marco tells them to pay attention to what is being said. Whitebeard, overhearing their conversation, does so as well. All three stiffen in abrupt comprehension, the captain pushing out a fleeting wave of Conqueror's Haki to get his children under control.

Ace's flames snuff out as he and Sabo stagger under the assault, dropping the fish to the ground between them. Sabo turns azure eyes that glimmer like ice onto the Captain's giant figure, mirrored by Ace's molten silver. The Whitebeard Pirates on-deck, who'd fallen quiet as they stumbled under the pressure, stared up at their father before cringing at the withering yellow gaze; feeling ashamed at the disappointment they saw directed at them.

"You will clean this deck and have it spotless before returning to your bunks for the night. No dinner. Thatch?" The Fourth bit his lip, conflicted over the order from his captain. Eventually, he gave in with a hesitant nod.

Thatch _did not_ at all like the idea of his brothers going without food. As both a chef and their brother, he hated seeing them hungry. However, even he is pissed at them for how they'd acted so insensitively. They'd all been told not to call or refer to any of the Trio with that word on this ship and yet many had callously done that right in front of the kid. As long Pops kept the 'no dinner' command to tonight the pompadoured chef could abide by it.

Ace and Sabo, eyes fading back to their more natural colors, silently watched as the giant Captain made eye-contact with each of the commanders and received a firm nod in return. Ace's anger still simmered beneath his skin, fire bright and hot flaring in tiny wisps along his arms and hands. Then the fire doused, grey eyes going wide. Sabo wondered at the shift from barely contained anger (which he knew still exuded from himself) to the cold confusion and worry he sensed in the other's mind. It only took a moment for him to take stalk of their current circumstance to grasp what had unsettled Ace, a similar heavy stone thudding in Sabo's gut.

Their Light had vanished without alerting them. Their precious Lu who is still blocking them from his mind, too emotional to risk letting them in, and making it hard to find the dragon via their bond. Their baby brother who's so upset he's nearly erased his presence in his desperation to hide away.

Marco looked over in time to see two things: one, there were _two_ brothers instead of three by the dead catfish; two, said two brothers were pale as hell and _sprinting_ for the nearest door to below-deck. In a distant corner of his mind, the Phoenix-zoan recalled how none of the Trio had been wearing their iconic hats. Thatch, followed by Vista and Jozu, went up to Marco and effectively disrupted the stray observation from venturing any further.

"Since we're kinda off the hook with Pops, I need your help," Thatch started. Marco raised a brow, lazy expression back in place (though a few cracks ran through it since he was still a little edgy), sending inquiring glances at the two following behind.

"Suppose they are too, yoi?" Vista nodded, eyes flicking worriedly to the door the Ace and Sabo almost ripped off the hinges opening and disappearing behind.

Jozu grunted and replied, "Thatch wants to cook the fish."

 _'I said "prepare" not "cook"_ ,' said commander groused. Aloud, he dramatically snarked, "Heathen! Giant brute! Uncultured scallywag! There is a world of difference between 'preparing' a fish and merely 'cooking' one." At the unimpressed looks he received, Jozu pretending to remove a bit of wax from one of his ears, Thatch heaved a put-upon sigh. "Just carry the damn thing down to the kitchen and tell my idiot chef-cadre to not touch it."

The diamond-man shrugged and complied, a tiny smirk at the corner of his lips. If whatever Thatch has planned cheered up the little imp then he won't mind acting the part of a pack-mule. He may not be particularly fond of the brat (and he won't admit otherwise), but nobody should look that beaten-down and defeated. Especially the noisy, bouncy ball of enigma who has two over-protective brothers—though Jozu can understand some of that tendency after having witnessed the crazy imp jump overboard to catch a venomous fish, wrestle the giant fish, then wither in the face of some careless words; all in less than a half-hour too, dammit—wrapped in a tight knot around his fingers.

"What're me and Marco for?" Thatch beamed at his two brothers. The First Commander twitched, not liking the look one bit.

"Visty is gonna help with some slicin' and dicin'!"

"And me, yoi?" The pompadoured chef's grin grew bigger.

"Some paralyzing venom shouldn't be an issue with your abilities, right Pineapple-Head?"

* * *

In a dark cubby hidden in a small closet, Luffy has himself swaddled up in a spare blanket while huddled in a corner. He'd escaped from the attention outside right as his big brothers' tempers flared, using the distraction for all it was worth to get away.

Somewhere in him, he'd _hoped_ that this _sídna_ might like him— _want_ him—like they want _Atce_ and then _Sávbó_.

Yeah, many of those out on-deck hadn't really talked to him like some of the Commanders, but the majority would always throw him a "hello" or "good morning/afternoon/evening" if they saw him. They were nice to him and would sometimes show _concern_ and _worry_ if they saw him doing something that, to them, is dangerous. And, though it would make his Sun and Sea jealous and a little angry, those Humans would occasionally call him their "soon-to-be little brother"—he would 'look' and sense little else besides _curiosity_ and _interest_ plus a sense that they truly believed what they told him.

It's weird to Lu because most who meet him and who are around him—be they animal, Human, etc.—are put off by him.

Animals catch his scent and they immediately know he is not what he seems. That, even in his Human form, part of him still registers as _predatordangerous_ so they react with wariness; often deciding to either get away or become hostile.

Humans would get a feeling of _notright_ , primal instincts trying to warn them, but most would ignore it (usually adults) and try to treat him like any other of their kind. Kids were more sensitive, generally listening to their subconscious' whispers, and would act much like the animals: avoid Lu or bully him. The fact that he was much stronger than children (plus most adults) only further alienated the dragon when he was young—still does to this day. That he had to _learn_ how to be Human, or at least _act_ like one, certainly doesn't help his case.

When Waves told him and Fire about Fishmen and Merfolk and how the World generally treated them, Luffy had been as excited as Sabo to meet them. They were a people he could actually _relate to_! Perhaps _they_ might be able to accept him, _understand_ him, because of their similar situations. Luffy should've known better. The second they caught a whiff of the Human-shaped dragon, the seafolk shied away while looking at him with eyes filled with confusion and caution. Then that one mean shark-lady pointed at him and started shouting. Those eyes following him and the ones who owned them radiated nothing but fear, hate, disdain, outrage, disgust, and rejection. It hurt. These people, whose home reminded Lu of the "cities" his kind had built or been welcomed in that he saw in memories-that-weren't- _his_ … A place that shined bright with color and felt warm and kind… It hurt to know that he is nothing more than a hated monster—a reviled devil—to even these diverse peoples.

At that point, he resolved himself with the knowledge that the only ones who could or would ever truly see Luffy as _Luffy_ were his Treasures, Shanks and a few of his crew, Makino, Gramps (maybe)…and that one guy who was the first Descendant he'd met. Seven, for sure, Humans who loved him and accepted him. Eight if Gramps' "love" counted, though Lu wasn't sure about the 'acceptance' portion. Then one unknown Human who at least cared about him despite knowing he is a Drakkón.

Lu stared blankly at the fingers acting as placeholders for the aforementioned people. Specifically, at the unused finger(s). _'I thought it was more…_ ' The number somehow seemed bigger in his head until he counted them out. Fingers folded until two were left; the number of people who have stayed with him through everything. Who _continue_ to stay with him.

He clenched his hands, hiding them in the folds of fabric to erase the sight. Curling more into a ball, he sits in silence in the dark.

 _'Stupid. So stupid!'_

His actions…losing control for a moment…might have completely derailed his plans— _hopes_ —that these Humans might take _Atce_ and _Sávbó_ under their wings and protect them. Protection they _needed_ because, although it raises his hackles to admit it, none of them are strong enough to protect each other from those targeting them. Yes, the fledgling had been _pissed_ that the Alpha of this _sídna_ had stolen _his_ Ace—the thought still irks him, honestly. But they had done it because they wanted Ace to join their flight. Become a wing-brother of theirs. If they got Ace to 'fly' with them then Sabo would follow. Both his brothers would be protected by a powerful _sídna_! Alpha Old Banana-Mustache Man said that Luffy could stay even if he didn't join so the dragon didn't have to worry about being separated from his _asalkynn_.

He curled tighter. _'Stupidstupidstupid!'_

Being around these Humans… People so different from one another in so very many ways, yet still called one another wing-brothers and scale-brothers. Still saw one another as valued members in the same Flight and led by an Alpha who calls them scale-sons and –daughters.

Luffy hadn't been aware that he held a wish—a tiny, fragmented spark of hope—that _maybe_ this _sídna_ would welcome _him_ , too.

Not until he was met with the scene above. The same one he experienced over and over and over again since he lost _her_. The one where others realized how odd and different Luffy is, in actions and behavior, from them. How "weird" or "freakish" or "not normal" he is compared to them. _A monster_.

That tiny budding hope that had been growing, and doing so without his conscious knowing it, died and shriveled. Stamped out by the slap of rejection he received and the reminder of his world's reality.

For something he wasn't aware of, that spark's death _hurt_ so deeply. He should be used to it. It's happened so many times. So _whywhywhy_ did this _hurt_?!

His skin burned with need to Shift; the desire to cover himself in scales for protection in this vulnerable state. To be in his other form that hummed with strength. To have his wings wrap around him, shielding him from the feeling of rejection and shattered hope. His throat and chest _ached_ like he swallowed a barrel of seawater, the inside stinging as if needles were lodged in it. His head throbbed; mind a jumbled mess between the emotional pain and physical discomfort.

Gripping himself tighter, like he's trying to hold himself together, Luffy keened. The broken sound high-pitched and raspy despite coming out no louder than a whisper.

* * *

He'd been on his way to the deck from one of the lounges, sensing a commotion up there for some time now and finally curious enough to investigate. He was couple turns from reaching the ladder—because stairs that steep were _not_ considered 'stairs' anymore—when he spotted the weird Strawhat Fry, blood staining his front, hands and face, race for a closet and throw himself inside.

Deciding _this_ seemed more important than whatever the hell was occurring up top, Namur follows.

Turning down the other hall, he walked over to the—

 _'Closet. What is the fry doing in a closet?'_ And why was he covered in _blood_ of all things?

Getting closer, Namur peeks in through the crack. Nothing. The room is dark but it's small and filled with shelves along the walls. Still, he couldn't spot Strawhat anywhere inside (not that there were really any places to hide in the little closet). However, the strong scent of salt, blood and fish— _'Probably the source of the blood, unless the weird fry bit Marco again._ '—tells the fishman otherwise. The fry is in there even if the Eighth Commander can't visually see the boy.

Taking a step back, he looks up and down the corridor and listens for the sound of thundering steps. The older pair _never_ leave the youngest unsupervised, one always within eyesight of the straw-hatted fry. He doesn't want to deal with their antics on the off-chance they blame _him_ for something that may or may not have happened to Strawhat. Or get twitchy because their "precious baby brother" was alone with a "stranger" without Big Brothers Ace and Sabo—yes, that deserves caps with the two's behavior from what's been seen and heard—around to defend him. But a quick search of the immediate area reveals no overprotective siblings coming after the fry.

Namur debates leaving the brat to his own devices or going back and figuring out what's up with the hatless fry.

The fishman isn't fond of kids. They're loud, spoiled little brats who, more often than not, run in fear at the sight of him, call him something degrading or ask degrading things, or… Kids are noisy little terrors that he doesn't like being around due to the amount of headaches they cause. There!

Commander Namur does not like _normal_ brats and the Strawhat Fry is _worse_. The fourteen-year-old (what a shock _that_ was to learn) is loud, hyper, causes mayhem (either on directions from the older two or on his own with the older pair helping), makes no sense half the time when he speaks, behaves oddly, is in a weird relationship with Ace and Sabo… And causes a shiver to go down the fishman's spine whenever he locks eyes with the fry while his instincts beg him to be watchful and wary of the teen.

Looking over his shoulder at the barely open door, the Division Commander's shoulders slump a few seconds later. "Dammit," Namur grumbles.

Turning away from the closet, the fishman begins his trek for the kitchen (since it's closer than the nearest bathroom). He may not really _like_ the small brat, or kids in general, but he clearly saw the distraught look under the messy appearance. The hatless fry's expression, although it was just a glimpse, held pain, defeat, fear and sadness. Like the little Devil Fruit user was about to be chucked in the sea to drown and was completely resigned to the fact. Namur isn't so cold he'd knowingly leave the weird fry alone when the brat's like that.

Which is why, not long after, the Eighth Commander is back in front of the slightly ajar door with a damp, warm towel in his hand. He still couldn't see the small teen, the odor of blood and fish remained but that could've been left behind if the kid had decided to relocate. Namur knew that wasn't the case because, unlike his initial visit, this time he could hear muffled, strained breaths and a very depressing hoarse whine. If you were just walking by or the hall from the door, neither of the sounds would be heard or noticed. The pained cries emitting from the small fry were eerily like a tamer, less despairing version of the keening wails Marco had made in his Phoenix form when their old Second Division Commander had died.

Namur shook his head, pushing away the morbid thought. Raising the hand not clutching the wet towel, he knocked lightly on the doorjamb. "Small fry?"

The sound jolted the dragon, finally bringing the extra presence to his attention. _'Go away, go away!'_ The voice isn't immediately recognized so he's having trouble placing the identity of the other. Luffy also doesn't like that someone other than his _asalkynn_ found him.

"Strawhat?" The fishman wants the kid's permission to enter. Some sort of response other than the brat going quiet. He knows that if he goes in before then he could be attacked; not good since he still can't see _where_ the fry is. The kid's presence is barely registering through Namur's liberal use of Observation Haki, so he really is clueless on where the brat's hiding. "I saw you come in here."

Well shit. Looks like Luffy couldn't pretend to not be here then. He can't quite recall the owner of the deep voice and he didn't want to risk the use of _kisú_ in his current condition to find out. Since his throat continues to feel constricted and his head is pounding, the dragon can only manage a miserable mutter of "leave".

 _'Brat sounds terrible_.' If he was going to call it quits and leave before, the commander certainly isn't going to now. Not after hearing that. "Can I come in?" Luffy gives a hoarse growl.

Namur tries to think back on what he's heard about the Trio, especially Strawhat, from his fellows. He _knows_ there's a way to get near when one of them is like this. Some sort of keyword or phrase—

"I want to give you something…" _'Promise! They said to make a promise_ ,' he finally remembers. But about what? He eyes the dark room and listens how his gut warns to be careful. "Promise it's nothing bad. Just a towel. I'll leave once you take it."

Luffy shifts around in his corner. _'Forgot_ ,' he mused, taking a small sniff and remembering the blood from his kill. It doesn't usually bother him as he normally washes himself after a fight or kill to keep his scales clean (or skin, as the case may be). He hesitates though. The dragon is in a small space and the other—Fishman, he finally identifies from the scent just now wafting to him—could easily pen him in.

The commander opens the door a little wider to get a better view of the room. As he looks about, he spots a pile of rags that have been knocked over on one of the lower shelves in the corner of the room. _'Must be hiding over there._ ' Not good. Strawhat Fry registers more like an animal than a person to him (mostly from what he's seen and been told); cornering anything when it's upset is a recipe for disaster.

"Fry, if you want you can come get it? I won't do anything," he offers. Should be a reasonable compromise, giving the brat the choice to stay in his hiding spot or approach him. Better than invading the fry's space right now.

Lu tenses at the offer, debating whether he should risk coming out or not. His head throbs again, making his task of trying to think clearly through mire clouding his mind more difficult. Eventually, he concedes to the need to wash some of the dried blood off. It's making his itchy skin worse.

Shuffling to the cubby's entrance, remaining cocooned in his blanket to hide his reflective eyes and messy appearance, Luffy peeks up at the intruding Commander. Namur remains still and relaxed right in the closet's entryway as the younger pirate looks him over, trying to make his large body less threatening to the teen. The dragon eyes the wet towel before resting his hidden gaze on the big pirate's face.

"Why?" Namur frowns at the quiet, suspicion-laden voice, not quite understanding what he's being asked.

"Eh? Why what?" The blanket-clad figure shifts the direction of its gaze to the towel dripping onto the floor then back up at the Commander's confused face.

"Big Shark-Guy like others," Luffy mumbles out, thinking of those he met in the undersea city as well as several other people who avoided him after becoming unnerved by his presence. "Don't like Luffy, so why help?"

Namur is a little surprised the small pirate noticed the fishman's behavior, seeing as he hadn't been obvious in his attempts to avoid the Trio (specifically Luffy). Taking things from how the brat must view them the commander's actions _could_ be seen as suspicious. Strawhat isn't quite _wrong_ in his assumption that Namur doesn't like him…

 _'But I did sorta say I'd try to get to know them better_ ,' he sighs.

The dragon catches the larger male's shoulders slump in a meager shrug as they mumble under their breath. Taking a second to tell his whispering instincts to quiet, choosing to go ahead with what his gut told him instead, the Eighth Commander opened the door to halfway before taking a few steps back. Luffy, trying to keep focused on his surroundings and also ignore the tumult festering in his head, wondered at the other's retreat. When the Fishman was almost at the opposite side of the hall from the door he sat down, crossing his legs underneath him with his lower back resting against the wall. Lu quietly and carefully made his way out of the cubby, curious as to _why_ the Fishman would back off, but didn't venture further than in front of the low shelf blocking the hideaway's entrance. Though it was hard, Namur managed to see the younger pirate's movements within the semi-shadows. Once the boy stopped moving, the commander spoke up, trying to keep his somewhat gravelly voice low and non-threatening (only partially succeeding as he isn't used of making this kind of effort).

"I don't like human brats in general," Namur opened, deciding to be blunt. "I also don't know you, or your brothers, enough to claim if I like you or not." The dragon listened quietly, rubbing a bloody hand against his forehead in a vain move to alleviate the throbbing ache behind it. "But Pops wants you three around and I'm gettin' tired o' Thatch, Izou and Vista badgerin' me." Namur sighed and rubbed his own head in mild frustration before relenting, "And I'm not callous enough to ignore a brat, human or not, that's as…upset as you are." Luffy perked up hearing that.

 _'Maybe…_ not _like others? Not mean, but nice?'_ He didn't want to hope too much, wincing at the stark reminder of the event topside. But… _maybe_ this Fishman would be more like Big Blue-Guy—'Jinbor' or 'Jinbeam' Sabo had called him—who had been way nicer and politer to the dragon than the Seafolk he'd met previously. (Granted, the big Fishman had been more focused on defeating Ace at the time… And, because of said previous meeting with similar peoples, Luffy hadn't gotten very close to the other…)

The pungent aroma of blood and fish is overpowering so Lu couldn't get an accurate read of the Commander's scent. Grudgingly, the dragon opens his mind a sliver and briefly touches against the Fishman's, just the barest amount to establish the validity and honesty behind the other's words. It's difficult; requiring Luffy to slog through the turmoil of his own mind and set it aside, along with the burning desire to rake his blunt nails over his skin, to properly 'read' Namur. But he manages and gains the feeling of his brain _pulsing_ in his skull as a reward.

The fishman commander in question is admittedly stunned to find a small hand (or what's likely a hand, considering the thing is covered in a blanket) grasp the edge of the closet door. Luffy pushes the door, opening it a margin wider, and stands just inside the entryway. The dragon, seeing as this person found him anyway, drops the effort of masking his presence—from his brothers and any making the effort to search for him at least. Namur notices the change but doesn't bring it up, instead holding out the damp, now cold instead of warm, towel to the smaller male. Lu bites his lip and wavers, not wanting to let go of his meager comfort in having the blanket around him. In the end, seeing the Fishman lower the towel and about to set off to the side plus the uncomfortable itch of blood flaking off his hide decides for him.

Namur blinks, startled at the abrupt stretching of the thin limb to reach the towel in his hand before watching it snap back to the fry's petite frame. The blanket-less, blood-splattered fry sporting a face scrunched in what looks to be pain. The dragon gets to work scrubbing off the dried blood, keeping the larger individual in his sights all the while.

"Where're your brothers at?" Luffy glances up at the Commander and shrugs.

"Coming." They were probably mad, too, that he hid even from them. He's not looking forward to that, or for the questions they were probably (definitely) going to ask.

"Hn." Wanting to find out why the hatless fry looks how he does, keeping his tone mild and voice "gentle", Namur asks, "Why were you hiding in the closet?" The smaller pirate freezes, darting a quick look at the Commander's face.

Continuing with his self-cleaning, the dragon stammers out, "W-wasn't hiding. Not-not at all." He doesn't want to talk about it. What if Big Shark-Guy turned out like the others?

"Hm? 'Kay." Going for a different angle that would, hopefully, get some answers, the Eighth tries, "Then, why are you upset?" Luffy sits down atop his pilfered blanket, towel clutched loosely in his hands.

He really, _really_ didn't want to talk about this. Worrying the off-white towel covered in splotches of rust-red and grimy, yellowish slime, Namur raises a brow when timid dark eyes rise to lock on the area of his nose. "Why does Shark-Guy wanna know?"

Namur huffs at the nickname but doesn't say anything against it. People have called him worse, using his status as a fishman to insult him, and it's better than "Pineapple-Head" or "Pom-Pom". The brat doesn't make the name sound insulting or derogatory so he's willing to let it slide. "Like I said, I'm not a callous person who'll ignore an obviously distraught brat." The raven's brows furrowed, not fully recognizing the words Namur used and thereby throwing off his understanding of what the Commander was trying to say. Correctly interpreting the dragon's predicament, Namur just bluntly throws out, "You looked upset and I got worried." Another huff, this one more of amusement, escaped the large fishman when the fry's face lit up with comprehension.

Unfortunately, for Namur who didn't understand why, Luffy's features swiftly twisted into confusion. "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why 'worried'?"

"I already said! I saw you running off all upset."

"But why would that make Shark-Guy worry?"

"I told you—" Namur broke off and stared at the little brat seated in front of him. Luffy waited, eyes never venturing further north than the Commander's chest. Scowling, the fishman replied grumpily, "I didn't like seeing you upset because it made me upset. There." The dragon's eyes widened hearing that, confirmation of the words' truthfulness evident in the steady rhythm of the older male's heartbeat (much easier to focus on than trying to emotionally read the other). He frowned when Namur continued, "Now. Why were you upset?"

 _'Damn_ ,' he thought. Luffy twisted the towel in his hands, not wanting to speak but not liking the silence right now either. He debated telling the Commander and seeing his reaction but feared it would turn out like many prior encounters involving this type of subject.

"Does… Does Shark-Guy like fish? Like eating them?" Namur blinked at the odd question but nodded. Yes, he ate fish; many merpeople and fishmen at fish. Hesitantly, Lu ventured, "Umm, does Shark-Guy…eat raw fish?" He snuck a glance up at the Fishman's face, darting his dark browns back to the chest after catching sight of Namur's growing frown.

Thinking he now had a vague clue as to where this might be headed, Namur answered lightly, "Yeah, I sometimes eat raw fish. It's called 'sushi', Thatch sometimes makes it if I ask." Luffy puzzled over the new word, silently mouthing it to himself. The commander felt like chuckling at the kid until he remembered the reason behind the brat's question. "Did someone," it had to be Namur's fellow crewmates, "get upset that you ate raw fish, Strawhat?" Luffy hunched his shoulders but gave a shallow nod. Eyeing the blood on the towel, Namur went on, "Did they say mean things?" A pause, then a second shallow nod.

Namur leaned back against the wall a little more, not having realized he'd been gradually leaning towards the dragon. Some of the building tension in Luffy's body ebbed at the move, though he remained tuned into the Commander's heartbeat which had picked up its pace by a few beats. With most of the fish blood and slime off him it's easier to scent the older pirate's shifting moods, though not by much. The Eighth Commander now felt worried for different reason, no longer as confident that the blood on the towel wasn't perhaps some of his siblings'. When Luffy had first mentioned the subject of eating raw fish, Namur'd instantly pictured that being the source of the blood. However, if his brothers had tried to do something about the weird fry eating said fish raw then…

 _'Might as well ask. Won't get anywhere wondering about it._ ' Narrowing black eyes on the smaller figure, he inquires, "Did you get upset by what was said?" Luffy clenches the towel tighter.

He can smell the beginnings of something akin to anger in the Fishman. The dragon remained quiet, only giving a third small nod in answer. Maybe it would've been better to never ask. To have ignored the other's concern and his own—stupid, feeble—hope that someone might try to understand him like his brothers do.

Trying to keep his voice low—really hating how this _was not_ one of his strong suits, not that he possessed any social know-how when speaking to kids or people not of his family—Namur soldiered on. He needed to know what led to the brat getting covered in blood. "What happened when you got upset?" Lu hesitated, not entirely certain about how to answer. "Did anyone get hurt?" A tinge of guilt hit Namur when the little raven cringed at that question.

Quietly, hoping the Fishman might understand, the dragon murmured, "Luffy didn't like what the H- _they_ were saying... How they looked at Luffy… Ace and Sabo got mad but…but Luffy… Luffy just wanted to get away." The fledgling glanced up in time to catch a look of relief flash across Namur's face.

It quickly degenerated into one of scorn and irritation, confusing the dragon and causing the younger to stiffen at the rapid change.

Pointing behind Luffy at the closet, whose entrance the fry is seated in, Namur says, "That's why you were in there." Lu nods at the not-question. Namur huffs and sits back again, grumbling about idiotic siblings with no filters between their heads and mouth. Luffy cants his head, not quite understanding why someone would have a "filter" stuck in their head. Wouldn't that be uncomfortable?

Still, it doesn't sound like the Fishman is mad at him. Or disgusted at hearing why the dragon had had blood on him. It's actually a small comfort to know that someone else, besides _Atce_ and _Sávbó_ , thought eating raw things is fine.

"Shark-Guy likes raw fish, right?" Namur shifts his gaze back onto the small pirate, who's now looking up at his face with something like…

 _'Hope? Why would Strawhat Fry look_ hopeful _about that?'_ Curious as to where this line of questioning might go, and also sticking with his commitment of endeavoring to learn about the Trio, the commander grunts and nods in affirmation.

Luffy weakly grins. "So, Luffy liking raw fish isn't…weird?"

 _'Uh… Ooooh…_ ' Well, that certainly explains the oddly hopeful air surrounding the brat. There's too many questions that pop up in the commander's head courtesy of that one innocent query. Chief among them being something along the lines of 'what the hell did I miss', followed closely by a need to find Marco and question his feathered butt on what the hell happened. Maybe find one of those brothers of the fry's and see if they might shed some light on this odd kid before him. Until then…

"No. It's not weird."

Lu's grin brightened, the young pirate absolutely delighted at the Fishman's answer. Luffy wriggles in place, bad mood quickly dispersing (read: shoved to the back of his mind to be dealt with later—or never), happy that he found someone who seems to genuinely like the same things as him. Food-wise, of course.

Taking in the excited gleam, Namur responds, "Why would eating raw fish be weird?" He's already mentioned that he liked sushi; several of his ship-mates also enjoy Thatch's sushi.

"Dunno. Everyone just acts funny or says mean things when Luffy eats it." Namur huffs.

Eyeing the small pirate, the commander holds out a hand. Luffy stares at it, confused, until the Fishman gestures at the towel in his hand. "You missed a spot."

The dragon checks over himself but doesn't find anything except the stains on his clothes. When Namur casually motions to hand him the towel again, Luffy hesitates. The other male hasn't done anything to hurt him. Or do anything bad to him. Compared to the other Fish-people, this one has been very nice to the dragon. It takes a few more moments before Luffy, slowly, gets up and inches toward Namur. The commander stays very still, waiting until the fry stops just within arm's reach and holds the towel out for him. Taking it, Namur carefully raises it to Luffy's forehead and gently wipes away the swipe of blood sitting there. The dragon analyzes each movement the other makes, eyes tracking the hand and Namur wants to chuckle at how the brat goes momentarily cross-eyed trying to keep his hand in sight.

When he finished, Namur dropped the dirty towel on the floor next to him. Lu, sensing his brothers would be there in a couple more minutes, thanked "Mur-Mur" for his help. Stunned at the sudden name-change, Namur blankly watched as the dragon backed up a couple feet before plopping onto the floor, a bright grin adorning Lu's face once he focused back on the Fishman. Luffy filled the time asking Mur-Mur what kind of fish he liked the best to eat and why. Too dazed by the new nickname and wondering about the younger's reasons for doing so, Namur absently answered the rather inane line of questions.

* * *

Marco, after joining the search for little Strawhat, is internally grumbling to himself about going along with stupid Thatch's equally stupid ideas—not that he wouldn't have helped anyway after seeing the devastated look on Luffy's face; just that he _did not_ appreciate the uncomfortable spare moments of numbing paralysis thanks to accidentally poking himself on those stupid barbs—when he comes upon Haruta crouched at the corner of two intersecting halls. Silently stalking up behind his youngest (for now) brother, Marco peeks around the edge to see what the other is so engrossed with…and stills.

Bending down, the phoenix deftly clamps a hand around the Twelfth Commander's mouth at the same time an arm wraps about the smaller torso like an iron band. In one, swift motion the First lifts the smaller commander off the ground and pins him against the blond's front. "Go tell Thatch that the Trio will be coming soon yoi," he quietly whispers into the redhead's ear. Getting a nod from Haruta, who stops struggling at the sound of his voice, Marco quietly sets him on the ground.

Understanding that he needs to be quiet, Haruta rushes off to do as asked (ordered). Tracking the retreating figure, the blond-haired commander makes a note to inquire what his sibling overheard at a later time (tonight or tomorrow). Marco sneaks another glance to see Namur setting the red-stained cloth on the floor.

"Mur-Mur is nice… Thanks, Mur-Mur!" The smile is different from the others he's seen on the kid's face. Smaller, though somehow just as bright as the large ones that practically glow, if not brighter.

Ducking back around the corner's edge, remaining unseen to the other corridor's sole occupants, Marco eavesdrops on their conversation while pondering what he's just witnessed. Simply recalling the image of Luffy actually _allowing_ Namur to wipe the blood—what else could have been on the teen's face that required cleaning off?—from the other has a flare of jealousy rolling through the phoenix against his will. It's a terrible feeling and he hates that he feels such a thing _at all_ … However he can't quite help himself.

He and Thatch, later joined by Vista and Izou, and then Pops, had been working to get the Trio to trust them enough to do something like this for the past few weeks. _Weeks_! Yet Namur, who hasn't spent more than a grand total of _maybe_ ten minutes in any of the Trio's presence _combined_ since that first day, was just let into that "forbidden" personal space the three brothers constantly maintain. And so _easily_. What in the flaming hell had Namur—the same commander who'd been _avoiding_ the Trio when Marco last questioned him (also unashamedly confessing to outright avoiding _Luffy_ )— _done_ to get this reaction?

His Phoenix feels miffed at the knowledge, too. Although Strawhat's scent ruffled its feathers and made it leery of the young teen, the firebird in him has developed an interest in the kid the more time Marco's spent with Luffy. It's nowhere near the level of fascination the bird-half of Marco holds for Ace—the commander blames that on the bird's attraction to fire—but Marco isn't having to settle the Phoenix down every time he's by the youngest sibling anymore. Progress. (Though, that might also have to do with the Phoenix preening under the attention it received from the Trio whenever they caught him flying above the ship. Even Marco relished the sense of smug pride upon witnessing the looks of envy and awe plastered on the three's faces.)

Moving on… Why does Luffy appear more relaxed speaking with Namur than when he's with him, Pops, or one of the other commanders? Two presences he's gotten used of being on alert for rapidly closing on their location reminded Marco of another important factor.

 _'Ace and Sabo weren't around yoi._ ' He blinked. The thought clanged, bouncing off the walls of his mind as it sank in. _'Luffy let Namur_ touch _him and Ace and Sabo_ weren't around _!'_

Might Bay's theory of the older pair of brother's unusual show of possessiveness, theoretically "masked as protectiveness" (according to the female doctor), concerning the youngest sibling carry some validity? Could that have something to do with Luffy's behavior? The lack of his brothers influencing Luffy to allow others closer to him?

The First Commander doesn't _want_ to think that his potential new brothers are psychologically manipulating the runt like Bay is alluding to. In fact, he's fairly damn sure that _isn't_ the case with the enigmatic Trio. But…he can't say with a hundred percent certainty that his adopted sister is _wrong_ , either (no matter how much he wishes otherwise).

Eyes closed, a hand rises to pinch the bridge of his nose, the back of the blond's head gently 'thunking' against the wooden wall he's leaning against. _'Three weeks and we know next to nothing about them, yoi_.' A self-deprecating smirk works into being at the thought. The scene from before, his ship-brothers' reaction to Luffy's casual display of raw power and animalistic behavior, has Marco frowning.

 _'Too secretive…_ ' The blond commander can't see any of the Trio as being "normal" teens with a pleasant past. Not with how they act or how easily they hide, both physically and using words. Yes, the Whitebeards (mostly Pops and a select few commanders) have learned _lots_ about the Trio from observing them and talking to them. _'But never something they aren't concerned about letting slip, yoi._ '

Any info they've learned from the Trio is inane and relatively useless (barring the discovery of what sets Ace/Sabo/Luffy off into a spree of violence). Nothing is given away about who they were (as pirates or individuals) prior to the debut of the Spades. There's rumors Marco and the others are working off of, but nothing substantiating or solidifying regarding the Trio's past. Izou, Haruta and he have been struggling for any worthwhile leads on the three brothers' lives and they are getting _nowhere_. Despite the best efforts of their information network, it's like the Trio sprang up out of thin air one day and declared themselves pirates.

Hearing the pounding _'thump thump thump'_ of what can only be two worried and very protective brothers, Marco drops his hand and leans over to snatch another glance at the Eighth Commander and Strawhat. Namur is looking very lost and confused as he stares down at a grinning, jabbering Luffy.

Marco _needs_ to speak with his fishman brother about what he missed prior to sending Haruta off.

Ace and Sabo come sliding around the far corner at the corridor's other end, the latter noticing his presence off the bat. If the oldest sibling knows he's here, Ace doesn't show it. Both brothers are careening for the smaller of the sitting pirates, tackling him into the ground and rolling in a tangled mass for a handful of feet. During a flurry of "Are you alright?", "Where were you?" and "How are you?", Marco finds that Ace is aware of his presence thanks to the suspicious glare tossed his way. (Namur receives a double-dose of the same until Luffy squeezes the glaring duo in a tight hug, redirecting Ace and Sabo back to fussing over the youngest's condition.)

Namur got up (grabbing the discarded towel on the way) and started walking towards Marco. As he passed the three younger pirates, Luffy chirped, "Thanks, Mur-Mur!"

His fellow commander looked down at the boy, grunted out something that sounded like "sure", and then kept going. When the fishman drew even with Marco, the phoenix gave his brother a we-need-to-talk look. Namur peered over his shoulder at the Trio before giving the blond Whitebeard a barely perceptible nod. As the Eighth left down the opposite hall Marco stepped out of his spot and into full view of the younger pirates, casually leaning against the corner with his arms crossed. He didn't want to box the brats in and this would give them the most room to go around him if they wished to leave.

"Thatch-yoi says dinner's ready." Three multi-colored pairs of eyes fixed on Marco. He bit back the urge to sigh seeing Ace and Sabo nudge Luffy into the small space between the duo, placing the fire-teen at the front and Sabo at the back. "Your fish is there too, Luffy. With that thing's damn venom-sacs removed and set aside for you three," Marco added, the last part coming out a bit more bitter than he meant. He rubbed a hand, which had the unfortunate fate of getting pricked during the ordeal, against his side.

Luffy had a mystified expression on his face, head resting on Ace's right shoulder. Sabo was running a hand through Strawhat's hair like he's petting the smaller teen, the sea-blue orbs scrutinizing Marco. Frowning, features a cross between the youngest brother's confusion and his own (typical) suspicion, Ace asks, "What you mean?"

"When you three left, Thatch had the fish brought to the kitchen so it wouldn't go to waste. Said something about it being 'Luffy's big catch so he should get to enjoy it', yoi. He also wanted to add the fish to some pasta he was cooking." The Phoenix-zoan paused for a moment seeing Strawhat's happy smile. "Idiot roped me into removing the damn sacs and barbs for him, yoi, seeing as Sabo wanted them."

The annoying smirk on the younger blond's face answered Marco's unspoken question with an equally silent 'I know you'd love to know but I don't feel like sharing'.

"If you were wondering," the commander continued, seeing Ace and Sabo cast a hesitant eye at Luffy, "Thatch kept the fish raw with a few seasonings here and there. Said he doesn't get to make sushi often but since Luffy seems to really like raw fish he 'has a golden opportunity to show off his skills' yoi." Marco left out the chef's added words of "to my brothers-to-be"; however, the scowl on Ace's face shows the younger fire-user can guess what else Thatch had said.

"Ne," Luffy poked his brothers in the shoulder, "Mur-Mur said Thatchy makes good fish." Ace and Sabo look ready to question the younger raven, either over the monikers or taking up the Fourth's offer. Meanwhile, the phoenix's jaw almost drops to the floor in disbelief.

 _'The hell yoi?! Am I the only one who's still being called by some ridiculous name?'_ He's gotten beat out by Izou, a dog, Namur (who, again, spent less time with Strawhat than _any of them_ ), and now Thatch! Vista had better still be "Mini-Mustache" or "Sword Mustache Guy". There's nothing to worry about Jozu's nickname having been changed, though Marco is starting to pray that that doesn't change before his own. _'What are the damn requirements to getting rid of the stupid names yoi?'_

Focusing back on the Trio, Marco finds them in the midst of another silent conversation. All the pineapple-head commander is privy to are a series of half-shrugs, scowls (mostly Ace but Sabo also makes one or two), heavy looks and a set of huffs as the older pair of siblings (apparently) give in to Luffy.

The smallest pirate grinned and listed, "Hat, then food, then bath."

"Lu… We don't know where Stefan is right now," Ace groaned.

"Probably waiting for Lu somewhere," Sabo sighed. Jabbing a finger into the younger raven's chest, the wavy-haired blond griped, "And I only agree to the bath coming last because you'll need a serious tooth and tongue scrubbing! That fish-slime-breath stench is horrid to deal with, Lu, so no backing out." Sabo wacked Luffy on the back of the head when the raven mockingly mouthed his brother's words, earning a chuckle from Ace and a smile from Marco.

"If you want to know where Stefan is," he paused until he had Ace and Sabo's attention, Luffy too busy trying to hit Sabo back, "I think I saw him near the mess hall—"

"Hat!" Luffy could've left a dust trail with how fast the brat took off. The remaining three pirates stared blankly after the runt until, shouting Strawhat's name, Ace and Sabo gave chase.

Marco stood there for a few more moments, his seemingly bored expression carrying an additional layer of blankness. _'Damn mood swings yoi._ ' At least the kid doesn't look depressed anymore.

The First Commander casually strolled back to the kitchen, debating whether or not to tell Thatch about the change of address. _'Nope. I won't be the one to tell, yoi. He'll just mock me for still being "Pineapple-Head"._ '

* * *

 _He's running._

 _Claws piercing the ground to help push him forward. Faster, faster. Twisting around and through the trees and shrubs, tail scraping off bark as it hit against them while acting as a counterbalance. Wings stay glued to his flanks, close but never touching the obstacles he dodges._

 _Scents of animals come and go, mixing with the steady aroma of dry wood, dirt, and decaying leaves. The wind laden with an omnipresent smell of water and salt, getting stronger as he races on._

 _Air rushes in and out of his lungs. Harsh breaths echo the rapid drumming of his heart just as the softer thump-thump-thump from two smaller pairs of feet echo large paws. The sounds permeate the dark woods. The shadows growing, swallowing him and those after him._

 _—Can't get caught! Can't lose!—_

 _The two pairs of feet grow closer and closer. Their breaths faint against his own loud ones, but their curses and shouts are easily heard. A breathy bark shows his amusement when one stumbles over a bush he'd flattened seconds prior. It helps he can see better in the night than his pursuers._

 _He yelps in surprise when one of them lands on his back, just above his haunches. A growl and quick buck dislodge the other before they can get a proper hold._

 _—Tiredexhaustedthirstysore… Gogogo! Keep going!—_

 _Faster faster faster! Lungs burn and ache, the chase has lasted for an hour but he needs to keep going! He can't stop. Won't stop. Won't lose!_

 _Branches and leaves scrape against the scales of his face. Webs, vines and moss catch his horns. He pushes to go faster, claws grip and rip earth and root in his drive to reach sandy surf._

 _He's running._

 _Running for all he is worth and he is so happy!_

 _Breaking through the final patch of scrub, he bugles his triumph at the sight of moonlit sand and surf. He barrels forward, leaping into the sea just as those after him finally make it onto the beach. A bellowed curse and a heaving, breathy laugh are cut off as cold water envelops him. Swimming lazily just outside the surf, feeling the sound of waves hitting beach ripple across his scaly hide, he waits a few minutes before tiredly floating to the surface._

 _His Treasures are laying on the beach and he can sense their exhaustion and frustration. Doesn't matter, he won! Won won won! He surges forward, wanting to be near his_ asalkynn _and share his happiness with them._

 _—Happy! Proud! His Sun and Sea are getting stronger!—_

 _Bounding out of the waves, he shakes off seawater and looks over to them—eyes closed, can't see him, too tired!—seeing they're catching their breath still._

 _Perfect perfect!_

 _He creeps up to their side and quickly pounces on them, stretching to lay across them—but careful careful! Not squish! Just pin!—and lets rumbling chortles and yips tell them aloud how happy he is. His mind busy rubbing against theirs—he growls when his Waves shares the impression of a small cat purring, flicking sand onto the two with his tail in retaliation—and sharing his pride and happiness over his success and their attempts to catch him._

 _He becomes even happier when his brothers' frustration melts into laughter and pleas for him to let them go. He thrums and pretends to consider as they beat at his scaly hide, loving their laughter and enjoying the joy he senses from them._

 _He blinks._

 _Air freezes in his lungs and he can't breathe! Gone! His_ asalkynn _aren't next to him anymore. Alone, he's_ alone _!_

 _—Nonono! Can't lose can't lose! Where where?!—_

 _"C'mon,_ Lú _! We need to go!"_

 _He breathes again. —Not alone! Not left behind!—_

Atce _and_ Sávbó _are a little down the beach, standing where the darker, thicker forest starts. He gets up, claws sinking into sand and small grains sliding off his scales and leathery wings. He begins padding over, gentle rasp of sand against his tail scales accenting the soft 'thump' of his strides._

 _"Hurry_ Lú _, they'll see you!" Steps falter and slow._

 _—Confused. Ace and Sabo feel of panicfearworry, whywhywhy?—_

 _It's night. Who will see?_

 _He looks down but the tiny grains aren't touched with silver anymore. They're painted gold with brushes of rosy pink. Twisting his neck, he looks up and behind to find a rosy-orange sun above the sea…_

 _A sea carrying ships closer and closer._

 _—Dread fear Danger! Runrunrun!—_

 _He races forward and turns back to look for his brothers, icy fear coursing alongside the fire in his blood. He roars, an urge for them to movefleerunescape! They wait until he is beside them, scooping them onto his back and trying to runhideescape into the forest._

 _—Happy happy, waited and not left behind. So angrymadscared_ terrified _they'll suffer because of it!—_

 _He blinks._

 _The awful scent of char and death surround him. He's smaller and the trees around him are burning. Smoke smothers him and he hears his Sun gag and Sea choke on it. A warble of confusion escapes him. The desperation, despair and fear of his brothers mixes and tangles with his own._

 _Tall figures lace the flames trapping his tiny_ kynsínya _. The crackle of fire changing and shifting to include voices of hateragefear. The figures' misshapen and claw-like hands reaching to swipe at them, burn them!_

 _"Demon!"_

 _"Devil!"_

 _"Monster!"_

 _—Not true not true! Not evil, not a demon! His Sun and Sea wouldn't lie to him!—_

 _He tries to protect his brothers—acceptancesafetylovefamily—but the touches_ burnhurtache _just like the awful_ nottrue _words hissing at him from the fire._

 _He blinks._

 _He's even smaller and his black—prettybeautifulshinyprotection—scales are gone! Gone and he's left with only soft hide covered in scratches and bruises and burns. He ducks down and covers his head, tears sliding down and stinging the cuts on his too-soft Human skin._

 _His_ Atce _and_ Sávbó _are small too and trying to shield him from the hateful fire. New figures, some small like him and others much taller and bigger, with barely familiar voices—ones he hasn't heard in years—appear in the blaze. More words and touches of burning fire blister against him._

 _"Freak!"_

 _"Weirdo!"_

 _"—Monster! Don't get close!"_

 _"Freakish child—"_

 _"He's not normal—"_

 _"Dangerous, stay away!"_

 _He cries more when he sees his precious Sun and Sea are being hurt over and over trying to protect him from the familiar words and voices. Listens to the voices shift from the old words to the previous ones, leaping back and forth. He criesbegs_ pleads _for his brothers_ — his Treasures!— _to get awayawayaway!_

 _The fire-words-touches burn and claw at his only remaining family and it's all his fault! Those words are meant for him but they are being hurt because he was careless and now they are being hurthurthurthurt!_

 _He looks up to plead with them again—_

 _Runrun leave save! Go!_

 _Beg his only family to get away—_

 _—Don't leave! Hate aloneleftbehind! Helphelp please!—_

 _And wails in despair when he sees dull amethyst staring down at him._

* * *

The Drakkón fledgling jolted awake. Harsh gasps, their near-silence born from years of forced habit, endeavored to suck in the cool oxygen around him. Luffy quickly went about reining in his chaotic thoughts and emotions, forcing the roiling mess into a tight, controlled ball within him. The dragon didn't want his brothers sensing his distress and waking. They needed more sleep than him.

To help, he tried centering himself in the _now_ like Sabo had taught him. Feeling the soft blanket spread over him and his big brothers (Ace having gathered most of it from how it stretches across Lu's front). The salt-water-wood-air scent of the wind swirling down into the crow's nest they'd nested in, bringing with it the light oiled canvas-cloth smell of the sails and mixing it with his siblings' unique scents. The feathery-soft-but-firm pillow against his lower back, feeling added pressure to either side from where Ace and Sabo's heads lay against it.

(The dark, unwanted memories, brought to the fore by his nightmare, began to recede. The balled mass of negativity began settling, no longer threatening to burst at the seams.)

Two hands slid away. One to rest delicately on the older raven's chest, right above the heart, the other mirroring it on the blond's body. Luffy's gasping slowly ceased as he took in the feel of two hearts beating beneath his palms. Felt air casually being drawn into each set of lungs to be gently exhaled a few beats later. Felt the firm muscles moving under his palms; one chest a couple degrees warmer than his own, the other a couple degrees cooler.

(Alive. Both his Treasures are _alive_. Not hurt. Not injured. Not gone. He isn't _alone_.)

Lu takes in a deep breath, holding it for a count of seven, and then gradually releases it along with the residual tension in his frame. He repeats the exercise once. Twice. By the third, the dragon has calmed considerably; the ball of _fearpainhurtloss_ more manageable and less threatening now, floating almost harmlessly in his inner-mind. It will need to be addressed and dealt with…but not right now.

Opening his eyes and sitting up a little from his slouched position against the wall of the lookout basket, Luffy turns his gaze upward to the night sky.

Thankfully, the dream-turned-nightmare hadn't been nearly bad enough to shake the thick walls he'd erected around his mind prior to sleeping. That would've been bad. Sabo and Ace _can't_ be mentally in-sync with him when he sleeps; napping, sure, though only lightly. Luffy's— _Drakkón_ minds are too different to a Human's when they sleep. His dreams are emotionally heavy and also sensory-heavy. Compared to the dreams Sabo and Ace often have—which they sometimes allow him to 'watch'— that are merely disjointed impressions strung together into a whole picture, _his_ are too much like being awake in the real world. In Luffy's dreams, the environment is almost an exact replica of what he experiences when awake: the sea smells like the sea, he can feel the resistance and give of the ground against his paws, hear the 'snap' and 'swish' of the branches breaking against his body as he runs by, the working of his muscles under his hide… And he is (emotionally) prone to being more reactive to undesirable situations than if it were real.

It took only one really bad nightmare—Sabo had called it a 'night-terror'—to accidentally send his precious _asalkynn_ into a three-day coma. Their minds couldn't handle the raw force of his unrestrained subconscious (again, Sabo's words) and were subsequently overloaded by the influx of sensory and emotional transmitted. Luffy never went to sleep without first completely walling himself off from them ever since; only the barest hint of the link to his siblings (one-way) is allowed in the off-chance they're in trouble while he's resting. Eventually, the ritual that had once taken several minutes to accomplish became second-nature, occurring without the dragon's conscious directive whenever he fell asleep. Essentially on the level of being instinctual now and useful as he hadn't meant to fall from a light nap to actual sleep.

Luffy retracted his hands from his brothers' forms.

His skin and muscles twitched, small bumps—'Sávbó _and_ Atce _called them something..."birdbumps"?'_ The thought floats aimlessly in the recesses of his mind—raised along the surface, shouting to give in and don his scales. Lu shook his head and fought the tidal waves of want. That dream had been awful but it reminded him of the fact he really, _really_ needed to be careful tomorrow (today?) when in front of the other Humans. Their kind didn't react well to things that were different—an understatement if his memories and the memories-not-his are anything to go by—and he'd already put his (tentative) plans of this _sídna_ accepting Ace and Sabo in enough jeopardy.

(The fledgling blatantly ignored the sight of his mother's eyes in place of his brothers'. How the memory jarred the swelling emptiness in his core. Luffy hurt more than usual thinking of _her_ right now, internally floundering in confusion over _why_ he's seeing hints and flashes of _her_ in his dreams as of late.)

A shiver racks the rubber-like body. He can't _wait_ to reach the island—Ace and Sabo having already promised they'd slip away at the first opportunity—where he'd _finally_ get to stretch his legs. And wings. Luffy's worried, however, that the much anticipated island romp could end up being delayed.

Not long after passing the unseen barrier of calm created by the close arrangement of the islands, he's felt a growing pressure in the air as of a handful of hours ago. A storm is brewing. Naturally, his brothers were informed and plans prepped and set aside should anything occur to create said delay. The dragon, predictably, only got antsier as the odd sensation grew instead of dwindling as they'd hoped since he'd picked up on the possible storm. It isn't much currently; a simmering pot that had an equal chance of boiling over or returning to placidity thanks to the New World's shoddy weather consistency. Lu scowled, making a silent plea that the potential-storm went the way of the latter option.

Though drained from accumulated stress, he is still restless and knows that a light nap is no longer a possibility. Delicately extricating himself from between Sabo and Ace, giving their slumbering minds a gentle brush of _finesleepsleeppeacefine_ to make sure they wouldn't stir, Luffy gingerly climbs out of the basket and onto the adjoining yard that juts out to the right. He ambles along for several feet, swaying with the ship's rocking while countering the constant wind, before sitting and staring out to sea. The dragon lets his treasured hat slip from his head to rest against his back seeing as no one is close enough to spot the green-tinged gleam of his eyes should the sporadic moonlight hit them just so.

Clothes constricting and irksome against his hide, he unbuttons his vest to alleviate some of the feeling; letting the wind hiss in his ears and run along his form in a meager attempt to soothe his fading scratches and the blistering heat under his skin. Dark eyes return to the almost equally dark visage stretched out at the giant ship's fore. Deep-grey expanses of cloud drift by, their masses almost matching the inky shadows between the glowing stars they regularly blot out. Only the crescent moon, between its disappearances, casts a small silvery glow on the backs of the sprawling dark shapes. Waves of blue darker than his older brother's eyes could ever be lap against the hull beneath him; the sea's barely deeper shadows colliding with a multitude of crests and slopes that glow and glitter in the patchy light shining on it.

The ensemble is rather hypnotic, providing a measure of peace even as it provokes the urge to let out his wings and take flight. Luffy quells the urge, content to submerge himself in prolonging this moment. Several minutes pass (or so he assumes, the dragon possesses a poor sense of time on the best of days) before he hears the warm murmurs of the Whispers. A small smile graces the little raven-hair's face, a light hum passing his lips as the fledgling takes up their offer of solace and lets them carry the dregs of his latest nightmare away.

The Human-shaped dragon acted as his _kynsínya_ 's sentinel until they woke near dawn.

* * *

Dinner had been a silent affair, the Trio almost mechanical in their movements as they ate. Vista, receiving a telling look from Marco, left after greeting the teens with a smiling nod. For his part, Thatch presented the approaching brothers an air of dramatized joy and pride. The former covering his concern and worry for Strawhat and the latter aimed at his accomplishment with the speckled silver catfish. After letting the Trio into the kitchen (dinner underway in the mess on the other side of the barrier and wall) and shooing out the rest of the cooks, the two commanders sat eating their own meals at another table on the room's other side.

(Throughout the small-talk between them, Marco never mentioned that Thatch had earned a better nickname than "Pom-Pom" from Luffy. The phoenix was too worried that he'd let slip the trickles of mild jealousy he felt in asking how his brother had accomplished the feat.)

The Head Chef had done a number on the catfish in his attempt to cheer Luffy up; the platters of sashimi differing from one to the next in the herbs and sauces anointing the white meat. Only a few pieces of each variety went to the older brothers which had confused Marco. Both teens were oddly complacent over the meager bits proffered by the youngest. Although they left the majority of food to be consumed by Strawhat, normally Ace and Sabo would squabble for a bigger share. This time, the ex-captains stuck with filching morsels from only each other (or trying to) while leaving Luffy to himself.

Once the three finished eating—Luffy hadn't touched anything after his fish and, surprisingly, Ace and Sabo let it be—dinner, they bowed to Thatch and politely thanked him for his efforts on their meal. That Luffy bowed to the chef in-sync with his brothers, if not as deeply, wasn't too surprising in itself. He'd caught (a couple) similar displays before.

No. It was when they said their thanks.

"Thank you, Mr. Thatch," echoed from the older pair, nearly covering the slightly quieter "Thanks, Thatchy." The trio of brothers made a quick exit immediately after.

Marco doubted they heard the pompadoured chef's mumbled reply of, "Welcome." Hell, he'd barely heard it himself.

The phoenix commander had been too engrossed by the absolute _shock_ mixed with no small amount of bewildered confusion on the Fourth's face.

Marco grumbled as he climbed the ladder to the deck from the _Moby_ 's interior and opened the door. Muted light, the sun's midmorning rays hampered by oppressive clouds, filtered into his eyes. By his brother's reaction the night before he knew Luffy had never called the other by that name before. It had to have been a very recent action on Thatch's part. Right?

 _'But making a meal out of Strawhat's fish seems…too…_ '

Simple? Inadequate? Or had it been a combination of things?

 _'Izou-yoi only got someone to watch over a pillow, though._ ' That sounded extremely minor to Marco. Unless that particular pillow—his brother had described it to be the large, lumpy red one with crude black stitching (in greater detail, it's Izou after all)—is a favorite of the kid's. _'Still a pillow yoi._ '

Namur's sudden change from "Shark-Guy" to "Mur-Mur" is shocking because Marco is _damn_ _positive_ his brother hasn't spoken a word to Luffy since the runt's been aboard. The commander still needs to ask the fishman what the hell happened between Strawhat's disappearance and subsequent reappearance in the corridor chatting it up with the larger pirate. Which reminds Marco…

 _'I need to have another chat with Haruta about privacy._ ' Being the youngest (officially) of their family, the Twelfth Commander began trying to prove himself capable of his rank by gathering as much intel on anything that he could. Eventually, it developed into a bad habit of the young redhead often overstepping the boundary of personal privacy in regards to his siblings and father-figure. His smaller size didn't help matters either; merely giving Haruta an easier time of sneaking into places he sometimes shouldn't be. Haruta's nosiness got especially bad whenever something piqued his interest, taking over the spot of 'Number One Most Nosy Commander' (usually occupied by Izou) with little trouble.

 _'Also need to find out_ how in the hell _Luffy managed to disappear in front of us, yoi!'_ And it would mark the second time since the kid's been aboard that he's done such. The first, that Marco is aware of, being that meeting with Pops. In both cases, the little pirate had been center of attention and yet _somehow_ pulled a vanishing act with numerous people watching.

"Just what kind of Fruit did he _eat_ yoi," the irked commander grumbled.

Just because he'd been paying more attention as of late didn't exactly equate to Marco (or others in on the betting pool) being any closer to the answer—Sabo's "hint" be damned. They _had_ managed to cross some suspected Devil Fruit off the list, however that was _all_ the progress that'd been achieved. For the sake of being honest with himself, Marco knew the only way to effectively find out was to learn more about the Trio's spotty past. How else were the Whitebeards to know if something Luffy did is a result of his Devil Fruit or a learned behavior? Unless the Trio upfront _told_ someone, which the phoenix sincerely doubted ever occurring; Ace and Sabo appeared to be having far too much fun watching the lot of them struggle along.

All the ex-Spades were tight-lipped on the subject (the few times they were asked), none more-so than Zack. Their only contribution was the detail that Strawhat's had his Fruit longer than Ace and the ex-first mate's confirmation the Trio "were flaunting Little Luffy's abilities like prancing ponies". Not much, considering nobody knew precisely _when_ Ace came into possession of the Flame-Flame Fruit (Izou's assumptions aside). On the note of Zack's comment, Marco was forced into permanently adding to the list of suspects—causing the damn thing to grow after it'd finally been wheedled down—upon taking into account the ridiculous names the elder brothers called Luffy.

(Haruta threw a small fit when the First Commander had compared ideas with the younger—Marco's yielding more Paramecia/Logia types versus Zoan than the Twelfth's. Thanks to a particularly foul mood, courtesy of one too many bird-puns via Thatch, Marco casually added on that the lists didn't account for the possibility of an unrecorded Fruit. The smaller commander broke down into a frustrated rant hearing this; the bird Zoan, hiding a smirk and feeling a might better, left his sibling in the mess hall to stew.)

"Keep yer face like tha' and it'll stick. Thatch'll have more reason ta call ya a 'moody hen'."

Sighing, Marco paused on the first step up to the wheelhouse. "You have room to talk, yoi?"

Fossa, seated against the ship's rail by the steps and smoking the usual cigar, grinned good-naturedly. "Lassies call it bein' 'ruggedly handsome'. Some migh' prefer 'broody blonds' though…" Marco snorted.

Glancing over at the large Fifteenth Commander, he asked, "What's with the confused look?" Fossa jerked his chin up to indicate something behind the blond.

All Marco saw were two grumpy ex-captains stiffly lounging at the base of the mainmast and glaring at anyone who ventured too close. Seeing that Pops isn't in his usual seat, the First assumes either Bay or one of the nurses dragged him off for a scheduled check-up. (If their father had been experiencing one of his bad days then Marco would've been informed long before now.) A quick scout with haki revealed a very faded presence that the First had begun to associate as Luffy's default. He already knew the boy to be nearby—Ace and Sabo's presence attested to that—however he couldn't pinpoint the exact location.

"Where's Luffy, yoi?"

"Think the squirt's tha' black thing dangling from the arm up there," the smoker gestured with a head tilt.

Turning to look a little closer in the indicated direction, Marco swiftly took several deep breaths to calm his suddenly jumpy nerves.

The mentioned "black thing" was hanging from the first-tier sail's yardarm with a roughly 60-foot drop between it and the deck below. If Luffy is the "black thing", and the Zoan doubted otherwise, then the little raven had bundled himself up in a blanket to look like some sort of black-colored cocoon. What made the commander beyond nervous is the fact the little pirate seems to only have either his feet crossed over the beam or (preferably) his knees hooked over it. Unfortunately, besides the slim possibility the kid catches himself on the line running the length of the yard's underside, there is nothing stopping Luffy from a one-way trip with a bad ending.

Really, the only reason Marco isn't freaking out _more_ is because of Strawhat's older brothers. There's no doubt as to the duo's awareness of the younger's precarious situation. If they aren't showing obvious concern—keyword being 'showing'—over the matter, than he also won't raise a word against it. (He'll still keep a vigilant eye on Luffy; one strong gust and the kid could fall.)

Likely guessing Marco's next question, Fossa continued, "Squirt's 'parently been in a bad mood all day, even snappin' at Fire-Fist and Blondie once 'r twice. Crawled up there 'bout half-hour ago an' hasn't moved since." The phoenix, eyes staying on the blanketed pirate being buffeted by the wind, listened to his ship-brother take a long pull from the cigar. Exhaling, the other quietly asked, "Heard wha' happened yesterday. Any o' it true?"

"Probably most of it."

"Buncha blubberin' idiots our brothers can be." Marco's acknowledgement to the statement was a simple nod before resuming his course for the helm. "Where're you headed?"

"Wheel, yoi. Wanted to know when we'd be getting to Monroes and," he speculatively eyed Luffy and the thickening grey clouds, "if this turns into a storm, how far it might set us back."

Trust something jarring to occur in the few seconds between speaking with his brother and taking four more steps.

About to lift his foot for the fifth wooden step, Fossa's alarmed and choked gasp—likely due to an inopportune puff on the roll of tobacco when he startled—had Marco whirling around immediately. Heart in his chest, wide blue eyes zeroed-in on the spot where Luffy had been hanging while Fossa scrambled madly to his feet.

Luffy was falling.

Both pirates made a beeline for the deck under the yard hoping to catch the plummeting teen. They would've, too, if it hadn't been for the surging wave of orange fire that stopped them yards short of their goal. (Marco, too focused on Strawhat's rapidly descending figure, was yanked back by Fossa when the larger noticed his sibling to be unaware of the threat.) Ace, steel orbs glaring at them from beneath the lowered rim of the orange cowboy hat, materialized amongst the swath of flame. Marco barely saw Sabo calmly walking behind the younger fire-user towards where Luffy would hit the deck.

The First Commander was too stunned at Ace, once his mind registered the pirate's presence, stopping him and Fossa from getting to Luffy. A bigger shock came as he realized _neither_ brother to be moving or showing some goddamned _concern_ over the younger teen's imminent, bloody impact with the wood floor! The kid's about to violently—

Except, a bare second or two from colliding with the deck, the black cocoon that's Luffy…

Expanded like a damn _balloon_ ; the blanketed mass hitting the deck and bouncing as if Strawhat were a ball then "deflating" before landing in Sabo's expectant arms.

Marco is fairly positive his weren't the only eyes looking ready to pop out of his head. Beside him, Fossa accidentally dropped his cigar as the other's jaw hung open uselessly.

Sabo, still holding a blanket-clad Strawhat, shot them an amused look as he left. Ace immediately followed the retreating blond, casting a momentary, odd look over his shoulder at Marco and Fossa as he did. (Later, the First would find that the look had been odd because, under the glimmering amusement, he'd seen an unsettling amount of confusion in it.)

"We're gonna die o' heart-attack before these brats'll join us," Fossa rumbled.

The Phoenix-zoan silently lamented his brother may be right.

* * *

 **A/N: So yeah, long…ass…chapter before I split into two. Would've been the longest so far, possibly longest to be written as an entire before splitting. Again, did** ** _not_** **mean for it get so damned** ** _loooong_** **. Was a royal pain to type up (you know how many 80 Word pages equals in a notebook?!) and still think I missed a few things. Will check back later but want to ignore any mistakes for now (feel free to point any out so I have less searching to deal with) and continue typing up the next chapter. I know not too much happened, sorry about that btw, but hey! Next one is "Island Fun Time"! But "fun" for who? Hmmmm…**

 **As per usual, PM if any questions or put in a review and will try to answer.**

 **ATTACKS:** **(because I guess it's a little necessary now)**

 **"** **Gum Gum Bullet** **"—similar to "Pistol", but not quite the same. "Bullet" utilizes** ** _kí_** **to make a more localized impact point with less surrounding damage; a small spike of** ** _kí_** **positioned at the very front of the fist acts as the main point of impact. Luffy doesn't usually stretch his arm back far when using "Bullet" mostly because he doesn't need to for most enemies. I guess you could think of the two as "Pistol" being the force driving the bullet, whereas "Bullet" is the piercing force at the bullet's tip. So… "Bullet" = piercing damage, "Pistol" = blunt-force damage. (Think of a diver jumping into a pool with hands breaking water first versus just belly-flopping, if that helps.)**

 **" Will-O-Wisp (aka Wisp)"—an orb of fire (generally mid- to light-blue in color) that is strictly Sensory-based and lacks any ability to actually burn. It also carries no heat and is shamelessly used as a glorified lightbulb (think 'Magelight' in Skyrim). Inside each Wisp is a 'core' of condensed flame (generally unseen thanks to the surrounding fire) that acts as the Wisp's power source—which Ace can remotely alter. The core also contains the Wisp's basic commands given by Ace (e.g. "stay within X-amount of feet of Luffy but don't get caught", "follow while remaining at this fixed position", "travel in this pattern while sensing for _ki_ for X-amount of time") though he can choose to manipulate it remotely/directly as well. **

**To keep control over them and utilize them for their intended purpose to the greatest effect, Ace has every Wisp automatically 'programmed' with the condition of not being able to burn _anything_. (Literally, they could come into direct contact with the most flammable of things and _nothing_ will happen. That part of the programming is unconditional and Ace can't dictate otherwise.) In return for their non-flammability, the Wisps function as remote sensor nodes. Things Ace can somewhat mentally connect with to 'feel' out an area, without needing to be present, through use of the Wisp's core. (Note: this will be explained by the Trio at a later date.)**

 **TERMS:**

 **Armen** **—[ar-men] Meaning 'silvery' or 'silver-like' in color.**

 **Áżda** **—[ah-zh-duh, 'ż' being like the 's' in 'measure'] General term for a mental bond between Drakkón and another individual (Drakkón, dragon, Human, or other).**

 **Kynsínya** **—[kin-seen-yuh] Term for 'family', whether of blood or heart/soul, which includes an individual's parents and siblings. Different from '** ** _sídna_** **' or '** ** _kynsídna_** **' as those only relate to the group(s) of Drakkón an individual associates with.**

 **Oorí'armen** **—[ō-ree-ar-men] Term for actual silver metal; 'oorí' indicating the 'silver' in question to be of the metal/ore variety and not the color.**


	15. ASL Finally Lands!

**A/N: So yes, it has been a bit longer than I would've liked since my last posting… BUT! I have some very good reasons, I swear! First on the list: edits. I've been going back and making edits to previous chapters (adding bits, shortening, lengthening, removing, etc.). Also, work picked up now that I'm more mobile—and now am currently out of that stupid brace and boot! Then holidays hit, fun. Then I got whammied by an awful, godforsaken cold that turned into the flu. Still getting over that; it's hard to type when you keep running to the bathroom to make donations to the Porcelain God. The screen randomly swimming and the headache didn't help either.**

 **With that, I will say that previous chapters will be updated with corrections over the next few days (just look for ones with an "** **UPDATE** **" tag towards the bottom of the beginning A/N). If you get bored and want to see if you can spot the changes then feel free to go back give them a reread (that word's rather fun to say! …Wow I'm tired...). Chapter 1 will probably be the last updated because I have lot planned for the rewrite of that chapter, mostly adding shit. It's last because it involves more work than the other chapters and I am procrastinating getting started on implementing the changes. Have them, yes: in lots of little stickies pasted all over the notebook pages holding the first chapter. Really not looking forward to transcribing all those notes into actual text of the story, so… Procrastination! Chapter 14 is a different issue. Thanks to a copy/paste error, the original post got cut off early…by a lot. Most of it's Marco complaining and brooding but Luffy does almost give him (and Fossa) a heart-attack at one point. Also, gave a quick look through it and found a couple grammar/spelling errors I missed the first time through and fixed those. Added a tidbit about Ace's Wisps too so I (hopefully) won't have to keep fielding questions about those.**

 **Something else I've been asked, in varying ways though** **myanimeobsession** **sums it up rather nicely: "** **So when Ace joins Whitebeard, he suppresses his own alpha instincts or does that just apply to Luffy?** **"**

 **Ace and Sabo are Human. Luffy is a Drakkón. They are two different species and Luffy tries to make sense of Humans and their world by applying what he knows instinctively and as a Drakkón to them. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Ace and Sabo help to bridge that gap in understanding when Luffy falls short. Yes, Sabo and Ace have picked up and/or emulate certain traits Luffy displays as dragon but, again, they are** ** _Humans_** **. Luffy does the same although not to the same extent as his older brothers. (** ** _There are a few reasons for the unequal exchange which will be addressed in a later chapter, though probably not soon. Feel free to guess the why's of this inequality; I've given a couple hints regarding said reasons over the course of the story but you'll need to read between the lines and make some inferences from those. However, again, if I choose to answer then please do not share what I tell you. Thanks!_** **) Back to the question, Ace's issue with Whitebeard is a little separate from his status as an Alpha. One, Ace is a Human so he doesn't have the same problem as Luffy does being a dragon** ** _and_** **an Alpha. Being a bearer of the Conquering King's Will does have Ace showcasing issues with authority which gets exponentially worse when he's in a heightened emotional state. However, Sabo also displays the same tendencies as Ace over authority figures. Therefore… Two, because of how they grew up, Ace and Sabo have problems concerning figures of authority regardless of Ace being an Alpha. To summarize, I suppose you could compare it to being a case of nature vs nurture: Luffy's issue with Whitebeard is of the former, Ace's the latter. Does that make sense?**

 **Sorry for the crappy chapter title. Honestly couldn't think of anything else and the other ideas were even stupider. One title option born of frustration went "Monroes Island! Blah Blah Blah!" and another was "Dumduhder! ASL Runs About Plotting". Eventually just settled for the one below because it made the most sense (and was actually relevant).**

 **P.S. Ending A/N is long as hell but please read it! I ask a few things regarding Ace's abilities and share a funny story (and not so funny revelation) regarding my family over the holdiays.**

 **P.S.S. Didn't get a whole lot of votes concerning the options I presented last chapter so if you don't like what happens next chapter then poo on you! You had the chance to vote and you didn't so meh! *sticks tongue out and blows a raspberry* I will add that part of the prank is to commemorate the holidays, will use my favorite color, and involve something hilarious my sister went through. Not in that order. Started writing the scene before November when I was still bedridden from surgery and have been slowly expanding on it. Getting sick didn't help those who will be the victims of ASL's prank either, just added more fuel to the proverbial fire. Nyahahahaha!**

 **P.S.S.S. For the last time! There. Is.** ** _NO!_** **Sexual. Intimacy. Between. ASL. Or. Whitebeards. In. this. Story! Innuendoes, sure: as pranks or jokes! Actual, full-on, down and open "This my boyfriend, So-n-So, we tango in our birthdays suits betwixt the sheets"? NO! No Ace/Marco, Luffy/Sabo, Marco/Sabo, Luffy/Ace, Sabo/Ace, Luffy/Marco (but I might write something like that in the future because that pairing sounds hilariously chaotic!), Thatch/Ace, Sabo/Izou, Thatch/Sabo, Izou/Ace…** **NOTHING LIKE THAT IN THIS STORY!** **For people still asking for something like this to either appear or not appear please read the A/Ns! Yes, in the beginning chapters I asked for the opinions of you wonderful people and after getting them I stated my decision in one of the later early chapters. All of which were written** ** _months ago_** **! I've repeated this many times since I made said decision and even in the most recent chapters I keep getting requests regarding the hypothetical pairings. I absolutely love that you like this story and enjoy reading it BUT! If I get any more comments regarding this I** ** _will_** **message back with a list of English reading classes, helpful guides to learning the English language and for learning how to read (both of which will include some "English for Dummies" books), some numbers for optometry specialists spread throughout the U.S. and in as many other countries I can get my hands on in ten minutes through Google, and also recommend a few sites for buying reader's glasses. Said list will be titled "Because You Need Help…"**

 **So, for the last time:** **There will be** ** _NO_** **M/M pairing of main characters (specifically of the ASL Trio between themselves or any other pirate) in** ** _THIS_** **story!** **I don't know how much clearer I can be here. Again, if you message asking "please no M/M" or "please M/M" regarding this story I will send you that "Because You Need Help…" list just like I threatened.**

 **With that done, let's get on with the long-awaited chapter! :-]**

 **/(** ** _Happy_** **)** **Hi** ** _Atce_** **!** **/ -Luffy telepathically speaking.**

/( _Happy_ ) Yo, _Lú_! / **-Ace and Sabo telepathically speaking**

 **(Disclaimer: see first chapter)**

* * *

 **Chapter 15: ASL Finally Lands! 'First' is for Family**

* * *

Ace is seated, cross-legged, on the dark beach with his eyes closed in intense concentration. Sabo stands guard next to his brother; gaze constantly swiveling back and forth between Ace, the trees and brush lining the thin strip of pebbly beach, and the surf behind them. Thanks to the lack of light, though he would've done it anyway, he's also using _kisú_ to monitor their surroundings. The boat—being barely twenty-feet long and lacking a sail it's no more than a large rowboat—they'd used to ditch the storm-struck _Moby Dick_ is pulled up onto the shore and out of the mild surf's reach. Luffy, scaly body resting against the larger rounded rocks, lies hidden beneath the salty water's surface several yards beyond where the waves formed before colliding with the shore. It's deep enough there for the tired dragon to be completely submerged, but also shallow enough that a simple stretch of the neck enables his head to easily breach the surface for air.

It's not the first time they've done this and none of them believe it will be the last.

Finally, after twenty minutes of tense silence, Ace sighs and opens his eyes. Falling backwards onto the smooth, little rocks, arms flung wide, grey orbs blink tiredly up at the cloudy sky. Feeling spent, the freckled teen takes in a few deep breaths to help re-center himself.

"That took longer than expected. Find anything?" Sabo ignores the glare directed at him and the accompanying 'pinch' from the older brother.

" _You_ try splitting yourself twenty ways," Ace grumps back. After another breath, he returns his gaze to the sparsely lit sky above and answers, "Few big animals and some smaller ones. A creek. Clearing, I think, near the creek." Sabo waits, impatiently fingering the pipe on his back, for the other to tell them what they want to know.

 **/( _Exhausted Hopeful_ ) ….Humans?.../** Both older siblings' gazes stray to the dark sea, Ace arching his neck to tilt his head back further to see.

To the untrained (and un-enhanced) eye, the dragon's head barely poking above the water would look nothing more than a simple dark rock. The horns could be mistaken for a couple twigs, a branch, or other mundane object caught on the stone. This, however, is only _if_ the witness is able to distinguish the difference between the almost-motionless, rigid shadow and the surrounding slightly lighter and more fluid, dark surface. With hardly any light, save for the barest slip of moon peeking through the cloud cover, even Ace and Sabo need a moment to pick out their little brother.

/( _Fine SafeClear_ ) No Humans, Light./ Sabo and Luffy relax at Ace's response, the blond plopping down to sit with his back against the freckled teen's side.

Sea-smoothed rocks ground together under Luffy's paws as the dragon levered himself into fully standing. Water rolled off his back, the sound mixing with the easy-going waves' _hiss-thud-swish_ against the rocky shoreline. Ace let his eyes slip close, tiredly taking in the pressure of Sabo's body leaning on him and the odd _fwoosh_ -ing of the water announcing Lu's passage through it. The blue-eyed brother scooched a bit closer to the fire-user, dismissing Ace's disgruntled mutters over being jostled—Sabo is cold and Ace is warm…so the other should suck it up and just share his damn heat like a good brother would—in favor of watching their dragon make his way towards them.

Exiting the surf, Lu briskly shakes himself to dislodge the majority of seawater still clinging to him. The fledgling giving his wings and tail-spines a few flaps and twitches afterwards, desiring to avoid a build-up of salt irritating the membranes when they're folded. The natural oil secreted by his skin is enough to keep the worst of the water's itch as it dries beneath and among his scales at bay for now. Normally Luffy wouldn't be bothered by it but he hasn't _properly_ groomed himself in a long while (for him). This means the oil's not as evenly spread or thick as it should be along his hide and scales. Right now, however, the dragon can't dredge up enough care to undertake the lengthy task.

A slit of grey tracks the huge shadow lumbering up to the older siblings, both casually listening to the rocks' shifting and grinding. Ace grouches when Sabo tries to shuffle even closer to him, the blond's hip digging into his ribs. Lu comes to stop next to them right as Sabo elbows their big brother in retaliation.

Bending down, Luffy gently nudges Ace's shoulder with his scaly snout. **/( _Tired Thirsty_ )/**

"'S over that way, _Lú_ ," is the mumbled reply, joined by a limp flick of the freckled sibling's hand. Ace doesn't feel like moving from this spot. Sleep sounds wonderful right now. Too bad their little brother disagrees.

 **/( _Thirsty! Drinknow Where? SleepyTired Thirstynow!_ )/** The demand is emphasized by more insistent bumps to the smaller form lying prone on the beach. A frustrated growl bubbles forth at the dragon's lack of success.

Sabo had been falling asleep until the prodding started pushing _him_ into almost falling over. So he smacked Ace's forehead. "Get up, ash-head. We need to move the damn dinghy anyway."

"The hell's that for, bastard?" Ace shoved the jerk back, one hand rubbing the smarting spot on his temple. "The boat ain't _that big_ , so you can do it yourself."

" _I_ already pulled the stupid thing onto the beach. _Light_ towed it through a storm and until we got help from that Sea King. So when I said ' _we_ ' I meant ' _you_ '."

Grumpy, exhausted and tired of having to wait for either sibling to cave, Luffy came up with the most expedient solution.

Ace, followed swiftly by Sabo, yelped at the disorienting sensation of suddenly finding themselves airborne. The feeling of flight was short-lived, quickly replaced by the rough collision with smooth gravel and wood.

Opening his maw slightly to bare a few teeth, the dragon growled and stomped a forepaw on the rocky ground; a large handful of pebbles jumped at the force used. **/( _BothTogether! TiredSleepyExhausted Drinkwantnow!_ )/**

Both older teens winced; partly because of Luffy tossing them fifteen feet like they were dolls and partly for being rude jerks to their precious baby brother. They were all tired and grouchy from the long journey and the added stress of being kept in close-quarters with hundreds of strangers for nearly a month. Luffy readily accepts the apologies that are quick to burst from his Treasures' lips. The dragon reassures them he isn't overly upset at their behavior and slips in a feeling of understanding behind the assurance. Ace and Sabo make quick work of moving the stupid, bulky boat into the nearby brush while privately thinking they don't deserve Luffy's easy forgiveness—they'd acted like pricks and they know it!

Lu trundles along behind the two quietly. When the boat is set down and suitably hidden, the dragon promptly uses his tail to gently toss the pair onto his back. Sabo ignores the wet mane in favor of draping himself across the younger's back, greedily absorbing the warmth exuded by the scaled body. Ace snorts in fond amusement while a similar wave (tinged with exhaustion) flows from their Light. Following a sleepy Ace's directions, snatching the strap of the rucksack they'd brought along in his jaw, Luffy set off towards the discovered creek.

The gentle motion of their sibling's elongated form creeping (surprisingly quiet for Luffy's size) through the brush quickly lulled the riding teens to sleep. Luffy felt a tad jealous over them taking the opportunity to rest while he couldn't—really, it didn't amount to more than a fleeting whisper in his thoughts—but plodded on, no longer requiring Ace's input to find the desired water source. He could easily smell it now. A scant few minutes later, the sound of rushing water met him and his pace picked up in eagerness. Slipping passed a set of trees with low-hanging branches, utilizing his tail to prevent the limbs scraping against Ace and Sabo, Luffy finally laid eyes on his heart's (current) desire.

The creek's small; hardly more than a yard across and, at best, a third that at its deepest. Regardless, it's _fresh_ water that smells clean and looks clear enough—the last part's difficult to truly tell thanks to the dismal lighting—to be safe for drinking. (No matter how thirsty Luffy is, Ace and Sabo had painstakingly taught him to always check beforehand. "Better to err on the side of caution, Light, than to suffer otherwise avoidable consequences," _Sávbó_ told him. There was more…but it kinda went over Luffy's head at the time. _Atce_ helpfully summarized the lecture: "Better cautious than stupid and safe than sorry." Their point drove home when, after a close-escape from some Slayers who'd happened upon the island they'd been staying on, Luffy got sick from guzzling down very brackish water. Then there's the time he [and Ace] got sick from the water of a stream that had weird [and apparently _poisonous_ ] plants growing in it. Or the time he drank from that river and his stomach felt funny for a few days…

Okay, so it'd taken a bit for the lesson to really sink in. He still _learned_ it and developed the habit of checking now.)

Setting the bag down on the bank carefully—because if Luffy breaks anything inside Sabo will be _pissed_ —and taking another step forward so his front paws are at the edge of the stream, Luffy made one more sweep of the surroundings. Finding nothing of import, he delicately lowered his forequarters nearer the ground (mindful of the two sleeping bodies on his back) and lowered his head to quickly sample the stream. Again the dragon found nothing to be concerned over. With both instinct and habit appeased, Luffy submerged his lower jaw and began drinking; filling his mouth with the sweet, cool fluid before closing his jaws and swallowing then repeating the process once more. It took several minutes to completely slake his thirst, only pausing a couple times long enough to rescan the area and let the water settle in his belly. (Yet another lesson learned the hard way: drinking _anything_ in large amounts—and fast—after not doing so for a while _will make one sick_! But this was discovered before Luffy'd ever met his brothers. Back when he was _alone_.)

Finished, tongue sweeping up the last drops clinging to his jaws, the fledgling tiredly began the search for a place to rest. Thankfully, Luffy came across a dense thicket not too far removed from the little creek. It took a lot of careful maneuvering and shifting about but Luffy managed to wrangle a spot within the thicket's confines _without_ destroying the natural shelter it offered. Settling down onto the twiggy ground with a relieved groan, legs folded and tucked under him like a cat and rucksack placed to the side. Placing his tail against his side, the dragon swept it away from his body so it scraped the along the earth to clear a small patch of any debris. Luffy wouldn't normally mind Ace and Sabo spending the night sprawled across his back, and his body exuded plenty of heat to keep Sabo warm on a mild night, except the air held the faint traces of rain.

Some gentle prodding, followed by not-so-gentle-prodding when the two didn't budge, and a couple slurred curses later, Ace and Sabo were huddled together against Luffy's flank. His right wing slid down, the scaled 'wrist' and leading edge of the appendage —aka the 'thumb', which is like the rest of the wing's 'fingers' (if a bit shorter) and not the opposable digit his mother's boasted—resting softly on the ground to cover his Treasures like a tent. At least the two were partially off the dirt, seated as they were on his hindpaw and lower leg he'd stuck out for them—Luffy was faintly surprised when Sabo rolled off his back and essentially face-planted onto the limb without really waking. Tail wrapping around the edge of the black wing, Lu curled is neck around to lay his head down on the outside-edge of the scaly limb. The light scent in the air hinting the 'rain' would be more of a drizzle didn't faze him; Luffy liked the rain anyway.

Slowly, golden orbs drifted shut as the fledgling gave in to his own exhaustion.

* * *

 _"Give that back, stupid lizard!"_

 _Ace's shout is met with a delighted warble and claws scrabbling against dirt and wood._

 _He laughs, watching Lu stumble over a root and plow face-first into a tree thanks to the straw hat slipping over his eyes. Taking advantage of the moment, his other brother, growling like the beast he's chasing, lunges for the pipe in Luffy's mouth. His youngest brother, almost dropping the pipe, squawks at seeing Ace darting for him and is quick to take off again._

 _"Stop laughin', ya ass!"_

 _Grinning, he cheekily responds, "Ah? Are ya admittin' ta needing help then?"_

 _"No! Just 's annoying ta listen to," Ace throws back. Immediately afterwards, Lu scrambles up a tree, pings of_ funamusedjoyhappy _softly emanating from him. He cackles, heels kicking the thick branch beneath him, as Ace growls loudly with frustration._

 _He keeps laughing, enjoying the sight of a stubborn Ace cursing and threatening the little dragon. Keeps laughing as Ace chases Luffy throughout the small clearing and surrounding trees. Smiling at the glimpse of happiness in Ace's eyes despite the foul language spewing from his mouth._

 _When Lu stretches his tail to snag a tree, the black body snapping back to follow after, Ace isn't able to stop his mid-air leap and slams into the ground. Hard. Their youngest brother is "laughing" at Ace's misfortune even as his own body is tangled amongst an unlucky shrub, itself and the old pipe._

 _"Bahahaha!" He nearly falls from his own seat on a branch, fighting to get air in his lungs, at the ridiculous sight the two make._

 _Wanting to avoid meeting the ground like Ace had, he slides off the large limb and, holding onto his slightly tattered hat, makes a graceful landing. Chuckling, he wanders over to Lu and begins untangling the hatchling. He hears Ace mumbling obscenities behind him along with some scuffling. Then Ace is right next him and helping a grateful Luffy get free._

 _"Little rubber-brained shit."_

 _He doesn't admonish Ace for the "light tap" he promptly delivers to Lu's head—sans hat at the moment—once the pipe is snatched up by its owner. Luffy whines at the hit even though it doesn't hurt him._

 _"Crybaby." Luffy sticks his tongue out in response._

 _He leans down to pick up the special straw hat, dusting it off and checking for damage, then places it between Lu's small nubs that will eventually be horns. A raspy lick to the cheek and scaly head rubbing his chest briefly as Luffy thrums are his rewards._

 _"Let's get somethin' ta eat, shall we?" Lu yips and bounds passed him._

 _He turns to see Ace stubbornly avoiding the dragon's eyes as the younger, warbling and softly whining, "pleads" to be forgiven for his theft of the pipe. His brother isn't fooling anyone. He doesn't need Luffy's abilities to know that Ace isn't really upset. The smile tugging at the edges of the older's lips is proof enough._

 _A grin lights his own face when Ace finally gives in and fondly rubs the plates between the dragon's eyes and base of the horns. Luffy, delighted at being "forgiven", begins nudging Ace to get moving so they can hunt. He snorts when their older brother is sent stumbling due to one of the bulky wingcases adorning Lu's sides knocking into him._

 _Grin still in place, he follows after the two. Luffy alternates between looking up at Ace and back at him as they walk. He marvels at the expressive eyes the dragon possesses and wonders how_ anyone _could ever call their brother's kind_ mere animals _. Especially when those multi-colored, shifting orbs were focused on him and Ace._

 _Amber jewels filled with a warmth that he and Ace are still unused to being directed at them. Still have trouble believing is_ theirs _alone!_

 _The eyes widen, amber lightening to a bright gold surrounded by shimmering yellow with emerald green flecks invading the irises. Ace, grey eyes wide and disbelieving, is suddenly looking at him…no! Him and something_ behind _him! Both his brothers are!_

 _His heart speeds up, his brothers' fear hitting him in waves. He slowly, shakily, turns his head to look as well—_

 _And is met with an explosion of light and heat! Surrounded by it!_

 _Then he's falling backwards into darkness. Ace's panicked cries of "Sabo!" and Luffy's roars of_ painfeardespair _echo around him. The hurt, fear and pain in their voices assaulting him like the fire eating at his body as he falls, falls, falls—!_

 _He hits something that breaks around him. Giving way fluidly before rushing to cover him with a vengeance and he_ screams _! (He_ knows _it's water._ Knows _it's nothing more than simple_ water _!)_

 _—….. ….. ….—_

 _But it burns worse than the hellish fire tearing into his side! It_ can't _be water!_

Water _doesn't sear your throat and lungs and eyes!_ Water _doesn't freeze you even as it scorches and rages hotter than any flame! Doesn't trap him in glacial ice that melts him like it were lava!_

 _—"…..Oh…"—_

 _He screams as he_ burnsburnsburns _! More of that ice-that's-really-molten-rock invading him and pressing down on him…Tearing him apart!_

 _He_ burns _and he_ screams _and he wishes to be falling again instead of this hell that's_ searing/freezing _his mind to pieces!_

 _—"…s…oh…"—_

 _Wishes for it to stopstopstop_ pleaseSTOP _—!_

 _—"..Sa…oh!"—_

 _Something coiled around him. Warm and familiar. Trying to detach him from the water-that's-blazing-ice._

"SABO!"

* * *

Ace leaned back as his brother jerked awake with a choked gasp. In the firelight he could make out the blue eyes, pupils blown wide with panic and confusion, shakily dart around. Keeping a hand on Sabo's shoulder, thin coils of soft orange fire spreading across the other's torso and down arms and legs, Ace quietly snapped his fingers. The sound had Sabo immediately riveted to its source, gaze trailing up to meet grey orbs and a face twisted in concern.

/( _Calm Breathe CalmFineCalm_ )/

Sabo mentally reached out, absorbing the comforting litany Ace kept projecting. Tangling himself in the mesh where their minds touched. Almost desperate with the need to ground himself in reality. Knowing what the other needed, each of them having done this numerous times over the years, Ace broadened the connection. To keep Sabo from sinking too far, the fire-user began needing the tense shoulder muscles under his hand.

Resting the free on the slightly damp blond locks, Ace murmured, "You're gonna pass out if you don't stop." Sabo stared uncomprehendingly at his sibling.

It clicked a few moments later and he worked to get his breathing under control. He hadn't even noticed he'd been hyperventilating until then. Or the fire spider-webbing over his body.

When he felt a little more in-control of himself, Sabo settled his back against Luffy's warm scales and tiredly closed his eyes. Ace dropped the hand carding through Sabo's hair to lay it on his own knee. The hand on the shoulder remained, only briefly ceasing its movements until Sabo grunted in complaint. Resituating himself so that he could sit with his entire left side touching Sabo's right as they used Lu's flank for a heated back-rest, Ace kept quiet and waited. Sabo continued taking deep breaths, holding them for a few seconds, letting them out slowly, then repeating. He resolutely ignored the phantom ache of the burn-scar spanning the left portion of his body.

"So… Storm?" Ace had held off the urge to question Sabo until the blue eyes were open (and staring absently at either his lap or something invisible) and his brother felt calmer.

Sabo nodded, left hand rising to rub at his eyes. Ace hummed lightly in reply. He already had a rough idea as to what Sabo's dream/nightmare involved and understood the need for physical closeness afterwards. _'Funny… Neither of us were big on that before_ Lú _._ '

"Sorry. Woulda woken you up sooner if I'd known." Sabo swatted the older teen upon hearing the low mutter.

/( _Idiot_ _Notfault FineOkay_ )/ The blond covered the hand kneading his shoulder with his own of the same arm, stilling the fingers working the area. He hated when Ace sent himself on those pointless guilt trips. "Light, hopefully, won't be so tired that he can't wish us a good night's sleep next time."

Running with the topic change, Ace added, "It _has_ been a while since he sang for us. Think last time was 'fore Jinbei…when the guys were drunk off their asses." Which both brothers _preferred_ to be the case when Luffy sang.

The Drakkón's language is very emotion-laden. A simple word, spoken aloud, could elicit a multitude of feelings in the listener; through the mind-link, the projections were amplified with the emotional/mental/visual impressions of the speaker. Even if a person couldn't _understand_ what's being said and held no connection (such as a mental bond) with the speaker, they would still receive vague emotional/mental impressions. Additionally, the species used songs to telegraph their feelings (openly sharing them with others) and bond with individuals (e.g., potential mates, flight companions, family). Songs were also used as a coping mechanism, helping individuals process and manage an over-abundance of a specific (negative) emotion. In both cases, others would often be allowed to join in on the song, adding their minds' presence just as they added their voices. According to Lu, because Drakkón felt so incredibly deeply, a grief-stricken flight/family member could be emotionally supported and healed via the seamless convergence of the flight's minds through use of song. They may never fully recover from their loss, but they also wouldn't succumb completely to the crushing heartache.

Unfortunately, despite how much Lu loved to sing, Sabo and Ace discovered they needed to be vigilant over the where and when of their brother doing so. Apparently dragons, whether the words be in their own language or another, are still prone to broadcasting emotion through song. Thanks to mountains of hours of practice alongside Ace and Sabo's worry-driven determination, Luffy _is_ capable of singing without noticeably affecting another's mental state. Keyword is "noticeably"; there's still some change that occurs no matter how closely Lu watches himself. Thus, the older pair _prefer_ that their baby brother only sings when those listening are consuming something that's affecting their mental/emotional state. Or there's no one else around—barring each other, of course.

Feeling much calmer, Sabo let go of his brother's hand and rested his hands on his thighs. Taking the hint, Ace removed his own appendage from its spot on Sabo's shoulder (though he didn't move away). Folding this arms on his chest, the fire-user speculatively eyed the membrane of the wing above him.

"What time you think it is?"

"Fairly certain we arrived close to midnight; that Sea King really helped us there," the blond mumbled, mostly to himself but it also helped give Ace a reference point. A 'nudge' had the older dousing the flames for a couple minutes. "Right," Sabo continued, moderately louder than before, "Unless Lu found a cave or something equally dark to camp in, it's probably around six in the morning."

Ace groaned, arms flopping to the sides. "Are you _sure_?"

"Who among us has the most accurate sense of time again?" The raven silently mimicked his younger sibling's words with exaggerated lip movements. Sabo elbowed him.

"Ow! The hell w's that for?" Rubbing the abused area, he muttered petulantly, "Stupid thing's bonier than _Lu's_ …"

"Did you know there _is_ such a thing as a stupid question?"

"Older brother here. Respect me."

"Respect is won through maturity and wisdom, childish one."

"Smartass."

"Dumbass."

"Knife nut."

"Fire freak."

"Turdblossom."

"Twatwaffle."

"Lily-livered jellied jackhole."

"Yellow-bellied pickled pyropants."

"Pur—"

" _Guhh-ff_ ," Ace and Sabo gasped.

Luffy, having (somewhat) woken up thanks to the two's bickering, had snaked his tail under the wing to smack them with its end. In the gut. Not _hard_ —he's too tired to put much force into the blow (and he didn't want to injure Ace and Sabo anyhow).

The aforementioned siblings still felt like they'd collided with a thick branch.

 **/( _Annoying Tiredwantsleep Quiet!_ )/**

In-sync, the winded offenders wheezed, "Sorry, _Lú_!"

* * *

The island appeared to be rich in a small species of deer and average-sized boar (Lu caught a few couple-hundred pounders). Once everyone woke up, after a bit of coaxing Luffy shrunk himself down to a third his original size to go hunting—accompanied (chaperoned) by Ace and Sabo. (Because nothing says "incognito" quite like a _40-foot black dragon_ weighing _two tons_ gallivanting about the island!)

Roughly 9 A.M. found the trio in a smallish clearing sequestered within a densely wooded grove. (Although, "clearing" only applied in that there lay space between the trunks of the trees; their tops still blocked a majority of the sky above from view.) Sabo and Ace were discussing (arguing) over who'd be going to the island's only town (and resident Marine base) and who'd remain behind with Lu. Ace wished for Sabo to stay, reasoning that the younger had had a "shitty sleep" and should hang back to rest more. Sabo _would've_ been fine with that…except he wouldn't put it passed the older sibling to wind up attracting undesired attention. On the other hand, the blond felt it might _not_ be a good idea to leave the two Ds _alone_ in unfamiliar territory. Ds, for whatever ungodly reason nobody seems able to fathom, apparently possessed the innate ability to find trouble wherever they may be. Leaving _two_ Ds to their own devices in the middle of the woods—one of which is a dragon and Sabo figures that's equivalent to ' _D-squared_ ' in and of itself—is just _begging_ for something to happen.

Essentially, the whole thing boiled down to them refusing to leave Luffy alone on a new island they knew little about and also being unwilling to let the other go off by themselves.

The fledgling just lay on the ground off to the side gnawing on some bones from the pigs his brothers had eaten earlier. When the argument came close to reaching the twentieth minute, he finally snapped. Pulverizing his current bone on his back molars and swallowing the fragments, Luffy sat up and belted a short, deep bark. Having practically forgotten the younger's presence, long used to the sounds of crunching/cracking bone and thus automatically tuning it out, the older two visibly startled at the unexpected noise.

 **/( _Ace and Sabo standing together in a street…DragonLuffy in woods… Reluctance Dislikebutwilling  Ace, Sabo, HumanLuffy together in a street…_)/**

Sabo sighed and began, " _Lú_ —"

 **"No,"** the fledlging interrupted. Tail flicking with annoyance, Luffy went on, **"Both or all."** Ace crossed his arms and scowled at his baby brother.

/( _FirmAdmanant Refusal Uncomfortable_ )/ "We can't just leave you _by yourself_!" /( _WorryApprehensionUnease_ )/ "We have no idea who or what's on this island, Light. What if there's one of _those_ places here, huh?" /( _Fear Anxiety Dislike_ )/ "And if they've got a _Seeker_?! No! You _aren't_ going to stay here alone!"

Both younger siblings let Ace rant, knowing he'd be more willing to listen to any opposition once he'd voiced his complaints.

Sabo spent the duration internally combing over everything he'd learned about Monroes Island and the area surrounding it. He doubted there'd be a Slayer outpost present, let alone any of those damnable Seekers—how anyone could call _dragons_ devilish monsters when those _things_ existed he'll never understand—that sometimes accompanied a cell of the dragon-killers. The island's too small a landmass to comfortably host any species larger than a firelizard or (at biggest) a cliffracer. With Monroes being a rather flat island, only a few hills dotting it, the latter isn't a likely inhabitant due to the lack of cliffs. The former is amongst the smallest of the dragon species and, unless you piss off a colony of the little buggers, relatively harmless. Sandwings (small cousins to the larger sandwraiths) are unlikely thanks to the sparse availability of their preferred sandy beaches, ignoring the proximity to the only Human settlement. Sabo can't think of anything else (land-based) that could exist here without encountering issues regarding limiting factors. There's still the chance that Monroes is visited by sea-going species, however, seeing as nothing amongst the Whitebeards records hinted at the possibility of the townsfolk and Marines coming across sea-dwelling dragons in the past years, it's not very plausible.

 _'No matter how I look at this, Slayers aren't a likely presence here_ ,' the blond thought. _'Light should be okay by himself…_ ' Sabo stared at the dragon sitting like a proud cat, head held high and tail curled primly around him, the end making jerky twitches. Their brother could've pulled off the look of regality…if Lu's nose weren't pointed in the direction of the treetops off to the side with his eyes firmly closed. The middle brother sweatdropped seeing the younger stoutly ignoring a (still) ranting Ace; Luffy somehow looked more like a petulant, pouting child than a fearsome dragon. _'For a while,_ ' Sabo sighed.

The gentlemanly pirate discreetly bent down and grabbed a couple rocks from the grassy ground. Hiding them in the palm of a hand, which he fisted and planted against his hip, he took on a relaxed pose.

"Ace." Both ravens turned their attention to the blue-eyed brother. Luffy only cracked an amber eye to watch, the tail's end slowing to more casual swishing, but otherwise didn't move.

Taking a deep breath, because Ace won't like this at all and Lu will surely argue by the end too, Sabo stated, "Lu's right, we should both go." He held up a hand to stop his older sibling from renewing his complaints. "Shut up and listen, would you? Now as I was saying, it should be fine if we left Luffy here. Provided," the black fledgling tensed at the look Sabo levelled on him, "he makes himself _smaller_ and _stays. Right. Here._ "

Ace and Luffy stared at Sabo like he had just spoken complete nonsense.

 **"Raaah?!"** "Eeeeh?!"

When he sensed the beginnings of a storm of refusal (vocal and mental) arise from each, the blond gritted his teeth in exasperation. Two stones were hucked, each finding their intended targets in less than a blink.

"Gaah!" Falling on his ass in surprise, Ace clapped both hands to his aching forehead as his body hunched inward. The older raven could smell the slightest hint of blood and instantly knew there'd be a damn bruise there for the next day or so.

Luffy whined as he rapidly shook his head for a couple seconds, wings flaring slightly and tail curling on itself in reaction to the stinging ache between his eyes. Lowering his head, he brought a paw up to place gently over the sore spot. It wouldn't bleed or bruise, the plates there were too thick for that—but it still _stung_!

Both teens, holding their minor wounds, glared up at the smirking blond attacker.

* * *

/( _Impatient HurryMove!_ )/

"Would you slow down?"

/( _Refusal WorryAngerAnxious_ )/

"And calm down, too…"

Ace forged on, rapid steps falling heavy on the dirt path they currently travelled. Softer footfalls behind him proved Sabo to be keeping pace, breaths coming easily despite having been running since leaving Luffy. A handful of forested miles now separated the fire-user and pipe-wielder from the dragon's location.

His little brother left _alone_. _By himself_ on an island they knew very little about. The little idiot that could find trouble in a _padded room_ without trying!

They were getting close to town and Ace eagerly sped up. A frustrated growl was the raven's only warning before a solid mass collided with the backs of his knees. Cursing, arms flailing, Ace barely managed to turn the would-be-ungraceful fall into an awkward tumble. If it worked, he'd be able to roll back onto his feet and keep going. The gambit might've ended successfully had it not been for the boot that planted itself squarely on the older sibling's back.

"Now that I have your undivided attention," Sabo growled above him, "will you stop acting like a _damn_ _twat_?" Ace bit back his own growl hearing the younger speak.

 _'Shit. He's using_ that _tone._ ' Forcibly relaxing his muscles, Ace twisted his head on the ground to bare the side of his neck. The not-so-subtle glare aimed at the blond went ignored as he was allowed to sit up.

Spitting specks of dirt out of his mouth, Ace shifted around to face his little brother but didn't bother getting off the leaf-littered ground. Wisely, he kept his mouth shut and waited for the other to speak. When Sabo used _that tone_ it meant he had something to say and _would_ _not_ take 'no' for an answer; Ace didn't want his ass kicked and then forced to listen to an even longer lecture afterwards.

Reattaching the metal pipe to his back, Sabo bit out, "I'm not thrilled at leaving _Lú_ by himself either, ya know. I only agreed to his idea 'cause I don't think there's much of a threat to him on this island. And, whether we're willing to admit or not, he _can_ take care of himself." The last part came out quieter and gentler than the former portion's angry delivery. Ace twitched but remained silent. "I also went with it so that I could talk to you about something. Some _things_ , actually." The blond took a deep breath and muttered, "But we'll get to that later. For now," he fixed a glare on Ace, "let's go scout."

Reading the look and knowing it meant 'I have more to say so don't you dare get pissy with me', the Fruit-user gave an acknowledging grunt. Smiling, Sabo held out a hand which Ace grasped onto, letting his younger sibling tug him into standing. Dusting himself off, making sure there's no stupid footprint stamped onto his backside, Ace grumbled to himself before once again setting off. _Walking_ instead of the previous running this time. Sabo casually fell into step beside him.

"Well?"

"Your fault for ignoring me. We're getting close to a small town and two people racing out of the woods, one looking ready to smash something," Ace ignored the verbal jab, "would've raised immediate suspicion."

 _'Making it harder to find out what we want to know,_ ' the freckled raven finished. "Alright."

"At least with two of us we can get back to Lu faster…" Ace perked up with those words.

"Fine, you win. Happy?"

/( _Smug Affirmation PleasedContent_ )/ He lightly socked the blond in the shoulder.

"Bastard."

* * *

The town is a wreck. Apparently a storm had hit the day before they arrived on Monroes Island and everyone is still busy with cleaning and repairs. On a bluff north of the small town, barely a half-mile away, sat the Marine base/outpost. Like the town, the outpost had suffered damage too; its condition mildly better than the former merely due to the structure's sturdier building materials and architecture.

Ace and Sabo didn't spot any Marines during their walk through the collection of battered buildings. The only people present were the townsfolk, each looking worn and weary as they moved about with single-minded determination. Only a few noticed the two interlopers in their midst. When asked, Sabo politely responded that he and Ace had been caught in a storm then washed ashore last night. Ace, slightly surprised at the ease with which the others seemed to accept this answer, glanced about curiously while intently watching those around them. He relaxed once he discovered that easy acceptance to be mostly a byproduct of the general exhaustion of the villagers. Sabo also silently agreed with Ace's assessment; the two of them didn't present themselves as hostile, thus of little importance compared to the greater concern over the storm's aftermath.

They weren't able to speak much with those who called out to them, too harried about correcting their home's condition, and were eventually directed to the local bar. Which the brothers discovered also doubled as an inn. Here, the duo split up. Sabo went inside to speak with the innkeeper (or whoever ran the place) and Ace left to peruse the town and immediate area some more.

Sabo found the innkeeper to be a pleasant older gentleman, roughly around Gramps' age—he involuntarily shuddered at the thought of the scary, crazy geezer—with a thin build and silvery hair framing a weathered, tan face. He helped the old man, Mr. Kade, clean his establishment while inquiring about the town's affairs and the latest news, adding idle chit-chat to buffer and mask any leading questions. He discovered that a new contingent of Marines was transferred to the Monroes outpost last year along with a new captain. The old members of the outpost regularly came to town to chat and help the villagers, especially after storms, while the newer additions didn't. The 'Transfers', as Mr. Kade called them with a sneer, only bothered to come by when they wanted to drink and make "a damn nuisance of their bloody arses! Always mumblin' and grumblin' to 'emselves like buncha yammerin' mutts, I tell ya!" Sabo had laughed at the crotchety tone and delivery. He laughed even harder when upon being told the name of the transferred captain.

Ace wandered around town, occasionally lending a hand if he saw someone struggling with a task. He chatted with a few individuals, trying to be polite as possible in his interactions, and kept his ears open to whatever was mentioned within range of his hearing. A quick poke here and there, plus some brief exploring of the town's edges, revealed no Slayer outposts or activity. (Ace couldn't hold back a sigh of sheer _relief_ once he'd wrapped his mind around that bit. Sabo had _explained_ why Luffy _should_ be okay for a while, but the raven and blond weren't completely _certain beyond doubt_ over those bastards' presence.) He also learned much the same regarding the Transfers as Sabo; plus, the folk who managed to overhear/understand the drunken babble of said officers noted several mentions of "some brats" or "damn Demon Trio". It left Ace wondering which of the brothers' victims got…demoted (there was nothing else you could call this) to being stationed on this tiny island.

It was a couple hours later both brothers found themselves hunched behind a scraggly set of bushes a stone's throw away from the battered Marine base.

/( _Confused_ ) It looks like a damn castle./ The dark-haired sibling stared blankly at the stone structure before them. /A _mini_ -castle... ( _Curious Whatyouthink?_ )/

A hand on Ace's shoulder, Sabo smirked as he commented /Far as _Marine_ bases go I don't think it'll be too hard to sneak in. / Ace huffed in amusement.

/'Cause we've already kicked their asses, they're weak, the place's a wreck, Toad-Face ain't here, or…/ the raven grinned mischievously /'Cause we've done this so many times?/

Sabo 'hmmed', pretending to consider his brother's points. A matching grin bloomed on his face as he replied /( _Amused_ ) Think you forgot to mention "stupid" and all of the above./ The older teen sniggered at the younger's tone.

Calling the base a "wreck" isn't very accurate; it received far less damage than the village it presides over from the storm. Yes, there were several holes in some of the building's roofs, most (probably all) of the windows were broken, one of the large double-doors leading into the place hung lopsided from a hinge (that looked about to give any minute), and the wooden lookouts stationed atop the flanking towers had collapsed (with pieces lying on the ground at the base of the wall). Strewn across the ground (especially along the base of the walls) are thousands of leaves and hundreds of little sticks plucked from the trees, furthering the look of post-disaster. And this is just what they could see from _outside_ the small base, never mind the inside!

(They figured the only reason the base sustained as much damage as it had is due to its location: a bluff with no surrounding protection and open to the sea wind on all sides. At least the little town below had the forest at its back and sides; only the front that butted against the rocky beach got left without a natural barrier from the stormy winds.)

/….Sooo… Plan?/

/( _ExasperationAmusement_ ) _I_ have to come up with a plan…why? I know you already have a couple. / The shoulder Sabo is gripping shrugged.

/Mine all involve going right in the front door, the back door, or just making a "door". Then getting what we need fast as we can and headin' back to Lu./ Ace gave his brother a lopsided, completely unrepentant grin in response to the younger's flat look.

Sabo's head drooped in resignation. Really, he shouldn't have expected any different. Ace is, generally, a blunt and straightforward person. He _could_ be devious when and _if_ he wanted to be, but that role is usually left to Sabo and Luffy. Not to say Ace didn't play dirty; he did that a fair bit and had even taught the younger two a few tricks. Lu, being a dragon, knew not to pass up on an opportunity that could better his chances for survival and took to the teachings like a gator to fresh meat—he'd also been willing to do _anything_ that would (in Luffy's head) ensure the older pair's continued presence. Sabo…not quite so enthusiastically. At first, that is. Eventually, after a talk with a certain dragon, the blond came around and learned every dirty trick he could—even bringing up and then adding those (previously detestable) skills he'd become aware of in his former life to the Trio's arsenal.

Eyeing the rundown base, Ace (somewhat) patiently waited for his brother to create a less chaos-inducing plan of action. He's pretty damn certain that, between the two of them, taking over the base wouldn't be much an issue. The raven also knows that his desire to waltz in, take what they want, then waltz out (destructive fanfare included) is born of the nervousness at leaving their precious baby brother alone.

 _'Trouble-magnet little idiot._ '

/There's a fallen tree near the back. Broken second-story window facing the wall too. Can borrow a set of clothes once inside./ Sabo flicked his gaze to the bright orange hat on Ace's head. /We'll need to hide our hats./ Ace huffed but nodded in agreement.

/( _Dislike Agree_ ) Figured. This's good a spot as any./ Reluctantly removing his hat, Ace placed it in the confines of the leafy bush they were hiding behind; he tied the hat's string to a branch to prevent any wind from taking the headwear in their absence. Sabo copied a moment later and wedged a stick between the ribbon of his goggles and the top hat's side.

"So where's this tree?"

* * *

Sabo and Ace left for the village and Marine base, the Drakkón fledgling napped (sulked) while digesting breakfast. Soft rumbles, huffs and growls accompanied the short rest as he stewed over the result of their conditions for leaving him alone. Annoyance at the two _twédar_ that are his _rvýsoré_ and irritation pinged through a very disgruntled Luffy.

Tiny! Jerks had made him shrink to the size of prey that would've been a bare mouthful if he were full-sized. His eyes were barely above Sabo and Ace's _knees_! Yeah, sure, he'd have an easier time practicing flying now than when he was bigger. That's a plus. But still— _tiny_!

For a half-hour the dragon dozed, digested, sulked…and planned revenge on his stupid big brothers.

Once his stomach wasn't so distended from his pork-rich meal, Luffy sat up and began meticulously preening his wings. They'd been neglected as of late thanks to a lack of real privacy and enforced stay on _Moby_ and, if he wanted to fly, needed a thorough checking. Thankfully, there were only a few dry patches of skin and a small area of irritated membrane from some salt that hadn't been washed off—Luffy, soon after shrinking to go hunt, had briskly rinsed his body of the dried seawater grime in the nearby creek. Both issues were minor and easily remedied with some mucous-like saliva his body produced to aid healing; the substance is also produced whenever he tried to swallow something that may have a difficult time reaching his stomach without causing trouble.

Fanning the wings lightly to make the mucous dry/absorb faster—irritation simmering anew at the reminder of his ridiculous stature—and gazing about the modest clearing, Luffy wondered how to go about achieving his desire. (Well, desire _s_ …he still needed to come up with a form of revenge.) To be perfectly frank, Luffy wanted to _fly_ and his only frame of reference to guide him in this endeavor lay in his instincts and watching Mango. Not a lot to go off. (There were the memories-not-his but most, if not all, of those would only become useful _afterwards_. Any that might assist the [currently] grounded fledgling were probably sealed away and he _did not_ want to go looking for them. Luffy never searched the sealed memories-that-weren't-his unless he really, truly, _absolutely_ had to.)

A quick survey presented the dragon a couple immediate concerns with practicing in this particular area. One, the clearing's in the shape of an irregular oval with three (skinny) trees marring the otherwise shrubless space. Two, at _best_ the ovalish clearing is a tail-length (at this size) wider than his wingspan and almost four of him long. On the positive side, the little trees weren't too obstructing; they're small (barely eight feet tall), near the hazy edges of the clearing's border and growing at the far end. On the negative side…learning how to turn might be heading the top of the dragon's list of 'things to do once airborne'. The three spindly trees wouldn't _hurt_ should he fly/stumble/fall into them, but they're scraggly, reaching branches could catch a wing if Luffy isn't careful; either the snag gets him then and there or it'll send him into something else. Still, the encounter involves a probability of damaging the wings' membrane and the dragon _really_ wants to avoid that. (Plus, Lu recognizes those trees as being abhorrently pitchy when little/young. Getting pitch caught amongst his scales, especially stuck to his hide, is a damn pain the ass to deal with. Ace once summed it up with: "Pitch is a bitch I'd wish on a harping witch.") Flying, when the dragon got to that stage, in a straight line shouldn't be too difficult—how much different could it possibly be to gliding? He's just adding some flaps to the action, right?—and Luffy tosses aside the minor speculation. Another considering look at the clearing and its trees settles the last internal debate he'd been having.

Stretching his muscles like the feline his brothers claim him to mimic on occasion, Luffy gets up and trots over to a set of trees standing behind him. Eyeing the lower branches, the dragon picks out one that's thick enough to support him and also juts out into the open space between trunks; it's also somewhat lower than those around it so there's no worry about his wings getting snagged/tangled with any stray twigs. The climb is quick and easy, taking less than a minute to reach the chosen limb twenty feet above the ground. Wings slightly flared for balance and talons gripping the wood, Luffy ambled out to perch almost a body-length from the trunk.

From there, tail lightly looped around the limb, he searches for a nearby tree that offers an easy landing site. Spying another low branch at an angle and across from him, roughly half-way down the circling stand of trees, Luffy unwinds his tail and gathers himself. Strong legs bulge as the dragon launches his bulk into open air, a deep inhale accompanying wings snapping out once they're clear of the crowding trunks. The hang time doesn't last more than a scant few seconds before Luffy is landing. Black wings tilt up sharply, swinging his lower body forward, to slow his momentum before folding half-closed; hindpaws followed promptly by forepaws grasp the wood, their claws sinking deep into the perch; the long, scaly tail swiftly winding around the branch to anchor the small dragon. Furrows are left behind as he pitches forward with a small surprised screech, though, thankfully, it's the constricting of the tail (and not the rapid half-beats of his wings) that save Luffy from a short tumble to the forest floor. Grumbling rumbles echoing of displeasure, the dragon resituates himself on the limb after the rough landing.

It's not Lu's best attempt but it's a far cry from the worst which helps mollify the wound to his ego a tidbit. Turning back to the clearing, the fledgling spent the next while repeating the exercise. The landings grow smoother and cleaner, only a faux pas occurring here and there as Luffy tries to imitate what he'd seen Mango and several other birds do before stopping at a perch. At the same time, his glides become longer and more elaborate, eventually including attempts to adjust his flight path via turns. They're small, nothing more than changing his landing point from one side to the other at the clearing's end, but there isn't much room to do more anyway.

Satisfied with how things are progressing, Luffy readies himself to give an actual go at really _flying_. Eyeing the ground at the far end of the open area—because Lu sincerely doubts things will go well should he even _think_ of trying to make _anything_ else the landing zone of his first attempt—and hunkering down, talons clenching the limb bearing him in his excitement, Luffy quickly reviews what he's seen of Mango's flights. Keeping those images at the forefront of his mind, Lu pushed off and spread his wings. It wasn't a launch like his first, nor was it mild enough to be a sweeping drop; he wanted to keep the pace slow and controlled.

The first wingbeat's unsteady, sloppy, and the second set's no better. The third destabilized him so bad that he tumbled to the ground in an ungainly, floundering mess. Wrenching a horn free from its recent burial, Luffy stalked back to his starting point—though he'd lasted passed the half-way mark, the fledgling didn't want to chance a mishap ending with his scales covered in those smaller trees' pitch—and resumed his former perch. Tail waving gently below him, the blades partially spread open, Lu thought over what he might've done wrong.

 _'Not fast enough?'_ Mango hadn't beat _his_ wings very fast, though the dragon has seen birds who needed to maintain a quick beat lest they fall. But…he couldn't recall _Okýsui_ needing to flap often aside from getting off the ground—

Flinching, Luffy squashed that trailing thought before he could go further. Thinking of _her_ on a good day hurt. Thinking of _her_ right now threatened to open that dark, roiling mass of _badpainhurtgrief_ nestled deep inside him. The same mass that had been, first slowly and then (very, very recently) more swiftly, growing in its efforts to _consume_ him. Luffy didn't know _why_ these feelings were welling up inside him as of late, becoming disturbingly easier to conjure forth any time a strong emotion of similar nature hit the dragon. Since he didn't know the reason behind the negative swell of emotions and he's still able to suppress them—though it sort of scared Lu that he couldn't outright _stop_ the mass—from trying to drown him, Luffy decided to keep the issue to himself (for now). Sabo and Ace were busy and didn't deserve having more troublesome things be piled up on them; it would only make them worry and frustrated. Once Lu knew why this messy ball of emotions kept trying to swamp him—there's a familiarity in them so it's frustrating that he can't place them!—or they became too difficult to keep at bay then he'd speak up.

Taking a deep breath, letting it out, then taking another and doing the same, Luffy re-centered himself. Calmer, he relaxed his sleek body in preparation for second attempt at flying; this time, he'd flap his black wings faster to see if that had been the problem. Excitement pinging through his system, the dragon pushed off once again.

It went much the way of the first. Except faster. And the landing included _both_ horns getting lodged in the dirt.

Tries three, four, five, six…all the way to eleven didn't go any better. Each attempt was different, Luffy constantly switching up the way he launched from the perch to the speed through the air (gliding, so sans flapping) to the rate at which his wings flapped. Each attempt, ultimately, met a sorry end with the dragon in a graceless, pathetic heap on the ground…or in a bush. It wasn't until the twelfth time that Lu _finally_ felt he had a breakthrough (that might not become a 'fall through'), for he managed to last two wingbeats while _staying fairly steady_. The joy was short-lived when, going for a third, a particularly strong buzz of _gleehappyexcited_ coming from Ace and Sabo distracted him. A yelp of dismay and a second later, Luffy barreled into a tree, body squishing into the branchless trunk due to the sudden forced stop. A moment passed as his Fruit's other property seamlessly kicked in and the dragon bounced off the trunk, sailed several feet through the air, then greeted the needle and leaf-strewn sod with a _thump_ , before rolling in a flopping tumble that ended with him smacking into the base of a different tree.

Stunned, Luffy sat in his final resting position—sat on his tail and lower backside, the rest of the spine pressed against the trunk making him appear to be sitting up, hindlegs and paws tucked up towards his middle with toes curled, forelegs and paws lifted and held to his chest(*)—with his wings partially furled and limp on either side behind him. Trying to process what had just happened, Luffy stared blankly ahead as the scaly tail flaccidly fell from where it whacked his face to lay harmlessly on the ground in front of him. As his brain processed the rapid events of the previous many seconds, Luffy came to a few conclusions:

One, rubber is an awesome power no matter what his siblings (or anyone else) says. Two, he'd been _so_ close to having an idea of how to actually (correctly) fly. Three, Ace and Sabo were to blame for the subsequent loss of Conclusion Two.

(Of course, Lu was partially at fault concerning Conclusion Three—he'd been monitoring his brothers since their departure in the off chance something happened and he was needed. Though Luffy had been concentrating on learning how to fly, part of his attention had stayed fixed on looking out for sharp emotional changes in Ace and Sabo. It hadn't been a conscious act, nor an unconscious one; instead, something more between the two. Just that, for some reason, going even a few hours without visual sight of his Treasures really bothered Luffy deep inside right now. Thus, the dragon hadn't truly realized how distracted his mind was while making those attempts to fly. So when that flimsy, surface-level attention got broken, and still a little annoyed at his size, Luffy just accused the first noticeable thing he came across: his brothers.)

A growling huff sounded from the fledgling, annoyance rising as he rolled to the side and shifted his paws under him. Now standing properly, Luffy vigorously shook himself to rid his hide of the leaf-litter clinging to it. More carefully, he did the same for his wings then checked to ensure neither of the appendages had been damaged. Satisfied with their condition, the dragon finally noticed the thirst nipping at him. Hunger, too, now that he's paying attention.

 _'Break sounds good.'_ Not like his tries at flying were going anywhere, anyway.

A quick sniff of the air had Luffy trotting out of the wooded clearing and heading for the nearest source of flowing water. He _could_ have wrestled with one of the filled canteens lying next to the bulky rucksack hidden under a bush; it's not impossible or especially difficult for him to open them as he is, buuut—

Fresh water tastes better than when it's trapped in a metal container. He's hungry and the few little birds present are too small and fast—unfortunately, they're also not stupid enough to get within striking range—for Luffy to eat. Besides…Sabo and Ace never explicitly had him promise to _not_ leave the stupid clearing. Instead, they made him promise to avoid leaving it _unnecessarily_ ; the dragon couldn't help a devious grin at the slip up. Plus, "unnecessary" is like "normal": they're always up for interpretation.

Mood improving at his brothers' slip, Luffy slowed his trot as he neared the small creek. A pause before leaving the safety of the dense shrub surrounding this stretch of bank revealed no Human presences in his vicinity. It also revealed a small, hollow log half-hidden by the base of a tree. The dragon stared at this find with a partial-thought forming in his mind solidifying at the recollection of the length of rope left with their concealed boat by the beach.

 **"Shishishi,"** Lu sniggered quietly. _'_ _Lucky~!_ Atce _'_ _n_ Sávbó _won't know what hit '_ _em!'_

First things first, though: water. Then food; taking down one of those boars, even when this small, shouldn't be too difficult. Yeah, they probably weighed five or six times as much as he did currently, but it's not like that's an issue. They're stupid and slow and he's faster and smarter. It would be sad day that a mighty Drakkón gets beaten by a measly pig!

* * *

"Can you _believe_ our luck?!"

"I know."

"Sure, we might miss screwin' with damn Toad Face…"

"He _was_ one of our favorite targets back then. Too bad he might not return from this meeting of his before we go."

"Yeah… Always got a good reaction outta his ass. Guy had serious anger issues, though."

"More like had a love for throwing ridiculous tantrums."

"But still! How lucky are we that we managed to score a free pass— _for the entire time we're here!_ —to screw with Toady's lackeys?!"

"Not like he was ever very good at inspiring loyalty in others, or maintaining discipline of his men. Bunch of prats, the lot of them. Can't say I'm too surprised, but the 'do whatever you want to the whiny prisses, just leave us out of it' is an unexpected bonus." / _Lú_ will definitely enjoy the opportunity. /

"We got, what, five hours of daylight left?" /( _AnxiousWary_ ) How upset you think Light'll be? We took longer than planned…/

"Roughly. Innkeep said we could bunk in one of the less damaged rooms for free if we want since it's supposed to be a cloudy night and all." /All I've been getting is some underlying frustration whenever I checked. Think knowing it should be fine to spend some time on the beach will perk him up./

/Gonna tell him what you found?/ Walking abreast each other, Ace cast a sideways look at Sabo. The older sibling's question effectively dampened the previously light atmosphere.

/( _DefiniteResolute_ ) Only what's relevant and necessary right now./

"Waves," Ace sighed.

"No, we got enough bloody shite to deal with as it stands." /( _Adamant_ ) We don't need it and Light _especially_ doesn't need it! /

"You can't control everything, Sabs," Ace replied, the tone ranging from reproach to mild dejection as he continued, "We've been successful so far and that's good, but… Sooner or later, Lu's gonna hear about it." Stony-faced, Sabo grunted as he glared at the ground.

"Nh, I know." He really does, he isn't just saying that. Sabo agrees with what his brother said completely and is in no way denying the inevitable futility of their secretiveness regarding this matter. "Just, Light…if he—" The blond bit his tongue and stared wearily at the dirt passing under his strides.

 _'I know, Lu thinks the world of them—_ him _particularly. Lu'll be crushed if he ever hears about this,_ ' the fire-user thought morosely. Shifting a hand, he gripped the blond's shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. Sabo smiled at the warm brush of comfort and the physical gesture.

Both siblings knew "crushed" might be a euphemism should the dragon discover what the older pair have gone to great lengths to keep hidden. Ace and Sabo were extremely grateful for the care shown towards Luffy and their part in keeping the youngest sane (and alive) during that time. _Who knows_ what might've befallen their baby brother otherwise—well, they had a fairly good guess but it's not something they liked entertaining. Honestly it's a miracle in itself that, almost four years after Ace and Sabo first became aware of the rumors, the two were able to keep Luffy in the dark this long.

Wishing to change the subject, Ace asked, "Sooo... What was it ya wanted to talk to me about?"

Knowing the alternative involved a lengthy argument with the older sibling—one that (so far) always ended in frustration and anger with a side of depression topped with a dressing of fear. The typical climax is both teens cursing each other and the world at large before agreeing to drop the topic until it next appeared—that risked drawing Lu's (unwanted) attention to the issue, Sabo was quick to roll with the offered out. The blond needed to speak with Ace about a certain something anyway; although, this could wind itself into a quarrel too, at least Sabo can openly get their little brother's backing in it.

"What do you think of those Whitebeards?" Unfortunately, the dark-haired teen had been in the process of stepping over a branch lying across the trail.

Ace, surprised and distracted by the random question, didn't lift his foot high enough to clear the graspy twigs protruding from the obstacle. Sabo caught the brief flash of _shockconfusiondismay_ and dodged out of the way of a wild arm to avoid getting whacked. A momentary "Gah!" preceded the fiery teen's impromptu meet-and-greet with the path's compacted dirt. The younger laughed at his sibling's misfortune while the older picked himself up and tried dusting his clothes off the best he could. Seeing a couple buttons had ripped off, Ace just went _'the hell with it'_ and popped the last so the garment could hang open unimpeded. Picking a twig caught in his hair, he chucked it the short distance separating him from Sabo.

"Shut it, Ripples!" Sabo ignored the tiny branch piece that struck his shoulder but did try complying with the growled demand.

Snickering, the blond commented, "Guess having ash for brains makes ya a clumsy spaz!"

Ace grumbled under his breath about "know-it-all smartasses" and "dumb blonds". The last mutters had Sabo projecting his glee at seeing the fire-user bite the dust, complete with brief flashes/impressions of the older's bewildered expression as he fell. The eloquent reply to this was a burning middle-finger—really, the digit was alight with fire that extended several inches above its curled neighbors—as Ace casually thumped his iconic hat against a thigh before placing it back atop his head. The blond eye-rolled at the display but did cease the mental teasing.

"Why," Ace huffed, "are you asking—"

/( _Curious Interest WanttoknowImportant_ )/ "Humor me, _Sólbi_."

 _'Dammit, he's serious._ ' Sabo and Lu usually only ever called him _that_ when they were. Unlike the piece of his Drakkón name, ' _Atce_ ' is used more amongst them thanks to its close similarity to his Human one. The raven took a moment to think before responding, "I guess they're… _okay_ far as people go. Least accordin' to _Lú_."

Sabo shot his brother a pointed look while saying, "I didn' ask about what our little brother thinks of them." He's not going to let Ace copout of this so easily and the blond is definitely not above using underhanded methods to drag forth a satisfactory answer from the other.

Seeing the silent almost-threat hovering behind the blue eyes, Ace resigned himself to the fact this interrogation is going to occur no matter what. Drawing in a deep breath and leaning back against a smooth-barked tree bordering the trail, the fire-wielding teen folded his arms and seriously considered the question. Sabo sat down at Ace's feet, casually propping his own back against the trunk and left shoulder close to (but not quite) touching the standing teen's adjacent leg, content to wait.

"They're a buncha kidnappin' bastards that spout asinine garbage about that mock-family-crew-thing o' theirs," was growled out after a long span of silence. The younger sibling remained quiet, knowing the other to be venting more than giving an answer, and started tracing pictures in the dirt. Another minute passed before Ace shifted his knee to close the tiny gap between him and Sabo. "They won't shut up with their hints about joining them," Ace scowled heavily while saying that, "and they keep picking at Lu and upsetting him."

"Buuut…?" And there's definitely a 'but' floating around in Ace's thoughts. It's a little buried and blurry, but Sabo can still sense it through the myriad of emotions his question evoked which Ace was sharing with him.

Ace shrugged and grumbled. Sabo pointedly nudged the leg resting against his shoulder, sending a tiny flare of _I'm-waiting-just-say-it-already_ to his older sibling. Ace huffed at the prodding but obliged.

"I _said_ : Lu was right, 'spite the lot of 'em being weird, arrogant bastards whose hobbies include kidnapping people to join that cult-slash-crew-thing o' theirs." A corner of the blond's mouth quirks up in amusement hearing the older's tone. It was almost an exact mirror to the mix of impressions and emotions drifting across their bond; a swirl of confusion, wariness, curiosity, interest, hesitance, worry, grudging respect with slight awe, mild fear…and beneath all of _that_ lay a hint of something close to _longing_.

 _'Very much like myself_ ,' Sabo muses, dragging a small stick across the earth to finish the latest doodle. He'd already had a similar discussion with their baby brother before Luffy got so bad he needed to be bundled up and separated from virtually everyone on the _Moby Dick_. (The dragon was being driven crazy by the need to Shift and clothes had started to be an issue when he complained of them making the burning itching of his skin unbearable. Although they would've agreed to letting Lu run about in boxers, the blanket became necessary because scales had also started to sprout without the Drakkón's conscious say.) Indeed, probably the only reason Sabo could pick up that last emotion is because he felt it too sometimes when listening to and watching members of the famous pirate crew. Granted, the blond hadn't recognized what the odd pang in his chest had been those times until Luffy pointed it out during their mental chat—an off-smile adorning the dragon's face that Sabo couldn't decipher thanks to the heavy shielding of the younger's mind at the time. _'But at the very least I'm_ aware _of that feeling. I severely doubt_ Atce _, knowing how stubborn he is, knows of it or is even capable of acknowledging it._ '

Ace, sensing that Sabo was mulling something over, let his sibling have some quiet time. As the fire-user waited he occupied himself with a similar activity to the blond, except using his flames to make little shapes and figures. After making a fire-lizard and then a flapping bird in the palm of his hand, the raven felt his younger brother 'poke' him.

"What do you think of Mr. Namur?" The fluttering bird fizzled out. Ace stared down at the top of Sabo's head, the black top hat resting in the other's lap.

/( _ApprehensiveConfusedCurious_ )/ "Why?"

Sabo shrugged, only replying with /( _Interested Curious_ )/

"He's… He's okay, I suppose," Ace responded upon receiving no further explanation. Sabo twisted his head to raise an eyebrow at the meager response. "Tch, fine. The guy isn't too bad, for a Fishman. He's at least more accepting of Lu's oddness than the others of his kind were," the last portion ending in a growl. _'Except for that Jinbei-guy, the rest of them are a bunch o'_ sheekyiisil kol'twédár _far as I'm concerned._ ' "Can't say too much else 'cause we haven't really talked with the guy. Light really seems to like him, though," Ace finished.

"Mm. Probably due to the similarity of their situation." Sabo smiled and added, "Can't be a bad fellow if Luffy was willing to let the commander help clean him up." Ace scowled at the reminder but grunted in assent. Neither had liked the fact someone (that strong) had gotten that close to their precious dragon-brother without their supervision; the issue only dissolved when Luffy informed them what transpired in the duo's absence.

Moving on, the blond started scratching a flower into the dirt as he asked, "What about Mr. Izou?"

"I like Lu's name of 'Lady-Man'." The blond lightly growled and swatted his brother. "Hehe, okay, jeez. Choice of clothing aside, the commander ain't too bad." The older frowned, "Kinda nosy, though, with how he keeps tryin' to steer topics to where we've been or what we've been doing over the years."

"At least he's subtle about it," Sabo muttered, thinking of a certain pompadour-toting chef.

Ace snorted, knowing exactly who the other is talking about. "Yeah, wouldn't say 'subtlety' is in his dictionary." Glancing at Sabo, and getting a _look_ in return, the older continued, "He's nice to Luffy. Good at reading body-language and, despite trying to pry into our lives, avoids anything that might make us edgy…" Which rather unnerves Ace because he's aware of the others doing it too whenever they come to talk with the brother trio.

All three of them are unused to that kind of consideration. In their experience, and discounting Luffy, people are only kind when they stand to gain something out of the interaction or deal. Sabo is only slightly wary of the Whitebeards' motives because Luffy is willing to interact and be around them for a prolonged period of time. For that same reason, Ace hasn't kicked up a fuss about ditching the crew already.

Finished with the flower-doodle, the blond started another. "What about the Fifth, Sword Guy?"

"You mean 'Big Mini-Mustache Guy'? The one with the dual-swords and big-ass mustache?"

"Yep." Ace leant back against the tree, staring up at the sky through the boughs' gaps.

"Luffy's gonna bite him if the guy keeps callin' him 'Little One'," the raven smirked. A pair of blue eyes rolled at this (though a similar sneaky smirk crossed his face).

"Lu won't bite him. Not over that, I don't believe. Steal his shoes or hat, yes."

"Damn." Sabo 'poked' his brother, letting the older know he was onto the attempted diversion. "Same as Lady-Man, mostly. A little suspicious over why he keeps giving us weird looks and asking about how we've been living. Stories of his swordfights are cool but the hints to join their 'family' are getting old."

 _'I can understand the "weird looks" bit, even if Ace doesn't. Our relationship isn't quite typical of "normal" brothers._ ' Not that Sabo's going to let Ace in on that tidbit. Luffy is very affectionate by nature, Ace doesn't know what a "normal" family is, Sabo lived in a frigid house with an equally frigid "family". Their dragon taught them to be selfish and the blond will gladly do anything to keep things the way they are if it means he can continue enjoying the warmth of his new family. "So nothing too incriminating that you're holding against Mr. Fifth?"

"He hurt you when you came to help me…" Sabo looked up to give his protective sibling a flat stare.

"It was a _bruise_ —a _few_ bruises," the younger amended when steel-grey orbs narrowed on him, exasperation clear in Sabo's voice, "that I got from not being careful, you twit! They healed fast so it's not an issue."

"You had a dark _handprint_ on your damn arm for _three days_! And there was an even larger bruise covering your chest!" Sabo scoffed.

"Have had way worse doing the same thing and my chest was fine because it was only light bruising." /( _FinishedDone ImmatureStubbornStupid_ )/

"Whatever," the raven growled.

"Getting back to the topic, what are your thoughts on Mr. Thatch?"

"What is this, Twenty Questions?"

"I'm thinking more of an interrogation…"

"You're an ass."

"Duly noted. Quit trying to change the subject."

"Lu's gotta be wonderin' where we are…"

"Then I suggest you get on with your answers."

Seeing no other out, Ace groaned and stared up at the sky once more. Crossing his arms, he grumbled, "Idiot calls me 'soon-to-be younger brother' _one more time_ I'm gonna torch his ass. Then probably throw him to a Sea King."

"Great! Other than that?"

"Really—" _Whack!_ "The hell?! Did you seriously—" _Whack!_ "Abusive prick! Fine," Ace shouted, rubbing his shins where Sabo's drawing stick whacked him. _'Ass used_ kiví _, too!'_ Glowering at the blond, Ace replied, "He's friendly enough. Sucks at subtlety but if he asks something we find uncomfortable he has the decency to switch to something else." Thinking of the last few days before they (temporarily) abandoned ship, he softly added, "Stupid chef also doesn't seem to like Lu being upset…"

"Ace," Sabo stopped drawing and pinned his brother with a deep look.

Ace tensed and turned away from the drilling blue to stare at the ground. Mind drifting back to that night the chef had spoken with him, the fiery teen thought over the commander's actions and behavior since then.

"He…" Ace bit his lip, pausing. Sabo leaned into his brother, providing silent support as the older tried to voice his thoughts. In a quiet voice, tone ripe with uncertainty, the raven slowly uttered, "He said he wanted to get to know me… Be _friends_ with me… What—You think he might be serious about that?" /( _DoubtFearHesitancehopeWorryConfusion_ )/

Scowling at his sibling, Sabo reached up and grabbed for Ace's hand. Unfolding one arm, the raven-haired teen let the other drop to his side so that Sabo would have an easier (and more comfortable) time holding it.

/( _Reassurance Love_ ) _Lú_ would kick your ass if he heard you right now. Or give you his kicked-puppy-eyes. /

Ace shuddered /( _Dread_ ) That aint' funny, Waves!/

Luffy's puppy-eyes should be considered a lethal weapon and made illegal. They could make even the most righteous and kindest person feel like an absolute dick—the scummiest of the world's slimy scumbags. No, Ace _did not_ desire to have that look aimed at him any time soon. Or _ever_! Sabo winced in sympathy, but didn't retract his statement; Luffy really would do either of those two things (or both) if he found out.

* * *

Luffy sneezed. The unfortunate timing of the action effectively cost him his most recent (and closest to success) flight attempt by causing him to lose control and be clotheslined by a low branch. Choking, the sudden and equally unwanted stop had his lower regions extending beyond the branch then snapping back as the rubber body retracted. The poor dragon rocketed back the way he came…in a sharp descent. Colliding with the hard earth, then tumbling along until a solid trunk _kindly_ put a halt to his momentum, the fledgling both cursed and praised his Fruit's ability.

He also, briefly, wondered if that story regarding sneezing to be real.

 _'If it is, then whoever's talking about me should be hung up to dry like meat,_ ' Luffy growled.

* * *

Not liking the recent dive in mood, Sabo hastily moved on to the next subject for discussion. (Luffy can help untangle the twisting vines of Ace's [lacking] self-esteem later. The blond would only get frustrated it were left up to him and Ace would get defensive and combative in return.)

"Rolling along," the raven's attention quickly swiveled to latch onto his sibling's voice. Anything to not focus on the tender topic of maybe-friendships with weird people who go around saving/helping others just for shits 'n giggles. "What do you think of Mr. Marco?"

Ace's hopes took a nosedive at the new inquiry.

Smirking, Sabo added with sing-song lilt /( _CuriousInterest Delight_ )/ "Light says you're attracted to hi—"

Fuck the nosedive, the raven's thoughts short-circuited and combusted in a thundering explosion! Trying to cut the younger off, Ace exclaimed, "I'M NOT ATTRACTED TO THAT PINEAPPLE-HEADED TURKEY!"

"—s feathered-self's flames~." Looking the picture of perfect innocence, Sabo smiled benignly up at his blushing brother. "Oh my, did you think I was going to say the _commander_? I do apologize for the confusion." Ace swore there're little flowers floating around the younger's beaming face and groaned at the hallucination. Sabo's smile widened at the sound and flashes of _denialembarrassmentexasperation_ coming through their bond. "But if you _are_ into him then you have my full support!"

"Shut up. Please, just shut up," Ace moaned, free hand moving to cover his red face, head tilted towards the sky and hat close to falling off. Sabo cackled at his brother's misery. /Why you askin' about Pineapple anyway?/

 _'Because I can't question you about Whitebeard without Lu around_ ,' the blond wished to reply. Ace only caught a whiff of the thought; just enough to know Sabo wanted to say something else but decided not to. Before he could ask, Sabo answered /( _Interested Curious confused_ ) You're oddly tolerant of him—And don't say it's 'cause of Light!/

Ace shut his mouth and sent a wave of _indignance_ and _denial_. He wasn't going to blame his (grudging) acceptance of the older man on Luffy. Maybe. Probably?

/You may not speak much to him, but you do pay more attention to what he says than the other commanders. Also, I noticed you're slightly more aware of him. ( _Adamant_ ) And don't try denyin' that either!/

"Wasn't gonna," the raven-haired sibling muttered petulantly. Honestly, he didn't really know what he thought of the First Commander.

The guy didn't annoy the shit out of him with repeated mentionings of "join our family" or "become our new brother" and things like that. All Pineapple-Head did was talk to them about random things, listen to Lu ramble, answer questions they (usually Luffy or Sabo) asked, or ask the brothers (mostly non-personal) things—Sabo and Lu would usually answer those; Ace trusted their judgement enough to not fuss over whatever got divulged. But a majority of his encounters with the Phoenix-zoan occurred when Ace was with his brothers; instances of him being alone (aka, without his siblings) were few. Those times, Marco would either be rather quiet—both males watching Lu run about with Sabo chasing him if they were outside—or quietly talk as Ace listened (though he pretended not to). Sometimes the blond Whitebeard Commander would ask how he/they were doing, others he'd ask more personal questions—Ace rarely answered those. Not that he didn't want to, most weren't _that_ personal, but they could very easily _lead_ to things neither of the older siblings felt comfortable sharing.

Both Sabo and Ace found Marco to be a strangely calming presence to be around, particularly so for Ace. It unnerved the duo because they felt a greater need to be on-guard around the man due to this and his keen intellect. The First is sharp and observant and that makes all the brothers wary to varying degrees, Ace being the greatest. (Look how fast he picked up how Luffy operated! That is also a point of concern to the older pair.) Combined with the fact Pineapple's a _zoan_ -type… It just spelled trouble to the freckled fire-user.

Ace 'pushed' his impressions and thoughts of the commander to Sabo, sharing his opinions and misgivings of the older pirate. /( _Confusion Hesitance Uncertainty_ ) I'm not sure what to think of him. Pineapple-Head _seems_ okay…seems kinda trustworthy…just… I don't know! /

Sabo gave his brother's hand a comforting squeeze. /( _Understanding Reassurance CalmPeace_ )/ "It's alright, I get the gist of it. My thoughts are fairly parallel to yours, too," the younger calmly stated. /Asked Light, he said your… _interest_ in Pineapple is probably because he is a Phoenix and you are fire. Also, from what our dragon has told me and what I have personally witnessed, Pineapple is equally intrigued by you. ( _Amusement_ ) Lu says Mr. Mango sometimes smells of flustered confusion after talking to you/us or when your flames are spread out./

Frowning, the freckled teen asked /Isn't Light confused about Pineapple-Head? Something to do with his Fruit?/

"Eh, don't quite get it myself. Think he said Pineapple isn't properly connected with his Fruit or along those lines." Letting go of Ace's hand, Sabo stood up then took a couple steps away. Stretching his muscles and cracking his back, he looked over his shoulder to meet wondering grey orbs. "Let's get moving. We've kept Light waiting long enough."

"Pfft, I wouldn't be surprised if half the trees are burnt down where we left him. Or a pile of bones littering the place," is the chuckled return, Ace following after his little brother. Not to be put off by the topic switch, the raven-haired sibling caught up and casually bumped shoulders with Sabo. /( _QuestionCurious Purpose?_ )/

The top hat wearer shrugged. /( _InterestCurious WhimImpulse_ )/

" _Luffy_ does things on a whim, Sabs," Ace snorted. " _He's_ impulsive. _I'm_ impulsive. _You_ aren't."

"I can be impulsive and whimsical."

"Rarely."

 _'Not quite true_ ,' the blond countered. Sabo did tend to think less and just _do_ whenever their baby brother got on a roll. Not like there's much of any choice when the dragon got something in his head; other than that, yes, Ace's statement is fairly correct. Sabo is their family/ _sídna_ 's thinker and it's not as if his brain likes turning off anyhow.

Lifting his arms to clasp his hands behind his head, Ace side-eyed the younger pacing along next to him. Tone serious but light, the freckled teen inquired, "Real reason?"

Sabo _had_ desired to leave this part of his discussion until they met up with Lu, but if Ace is going to be this insistent… _'If I told Flame-Brain to drop it now he'll just be moody and possibly more than unnecessarily uncooperative later._ '

"Luffy's planning something regarding our kidnappers," the younger blandly answered, keeping his personal feelings of the matter to himself. Ace huffed exasperatedly.

"I knew _that_! Talk to the rubber idiot too, ya know?"

"Then why are you asking?"

/( _KnowingAware Curious SaboThoughts?_ )/

Blue eyes rolled at the impression-formed query. "I know you've asked Light too, as have I, and I also doubt the answer you were given differs from the one he gave me."

"Something about…learning? And getting stronger?" Sabo nodded. "You believe there's another?" Again, Sabo nodded.

"Yeah, but I don't know what exactly it is. He's being surprisingly tight-lipped and secretive about it, too." Which meant the dragon either didn't have an exact, clear-cut reasoning behind this decision and, thus, making it one of Luffy's gut-based impulses. _'Or,_ Lú _, for whatever reason, thinks that we'll react negatively to his idea._ ' At this point it's a 50/50 toss-up. "However," Sabo carried on, shooting a glance at a frowning Ace, "I wanted to know your opinion of the Whitebeards because Lu wants us to be more… _open_ to them. At the very least be less hostile towards them."

Ace scowled hearing that. Why would Luffy want something like that? Just what is their baby brother planning?

"Might as well go along with it, _Atce_. Luffy'll guilt-trip us with that thrice-damned puppy-eyes technique of his and we'll get dragged along by his desires anyway," the blue coat wearing teen muttered.

"Jeez, try to sound a little more defeated, will ya?" Ace understood though. Shit seems to go however Luffy wants (for the most part), so just accepting and going with the dragon's whims right now would be less of a hassle. And let the older pair avoid the dreaded some-bastard-kicked-a-helpless-little-puppy-eyed look. "But…"

"Mm?"

"Does this mean we can't do _that_? Since Lu wants to be _nice_ to the bunch o' bastards?" Because Ace would be having a serious issue (aka a flaming _fit_ ) otherwise.

"Oh gods no! Of course we are still doing _that_! Absolutely _nobody_ bloody damn well gets away with insulting our precious baby brother and making him cry!" The freckled raven sighed in relief. A mischievous and dark grin stretched across Sabo's features, matching the unholy gleam in his dark blue eyes. "Besides, thanks to that one Marine and the townsfolk, I got a couple new ideas."

"Oh?" Turning to his soul-brother, mirroring the younger's look, Ace excitedly demanded, "Do tell!"

* * *

It was only a few hours to sundown when Ace and Sabo made it back to the clearing they'd left Luffy in that morning. Unlike that time, however, the area now looked like a fight between two beasts had occurred. There were deeps furrows gouged across the earth and some on the various trunks surrounding the clearing. Several branches hung twisted and limp, broken and barely attached to their anchoring trunks; another dozen dotting the ground itself in even worse condition. A small pine tree with its top-half snapped almost clean off stood at the opposite end from the staring, bewildered duo.

Step by careful, disbelieving—but they'd left Luffy _alone_ for several hours so what did they honestly _think_ would happen?—step, the duo approached the very edge of the ruined clearing. Just as they were passing between two trees, Ace voiced what both brothers were thinking.

"What the fu—UUUUCK~!"

"GAAAHH!"

Unfortunately, that is also when the two stepped into the same snare-loop the dragon had set for them, quickly suspending the cursing pair upside down. Luckily, they could _almost_ touch the ground with their fingertips. Unluckily, getting caught in the same snare, having their feet yanked out from under them, then hoisted aloft in a few short seconds left the teens with a throbbing skull where they knocked noggins.

"My fucking head," Ace moaned, hands clutching the throbbing piece of anatomy in the vain hope of relieving some of his pain. One of the raven's elbows caught his fellow victim in the ribs.

"Shit! Watch it, would ya? And there should be a limit to how hard-headed someone can be! What the fuck's your skull made of?!"

"I could ask the same! And get your damn arm outta my stomach!"

"Move your bony-ass elbow from my spine first!"

"Watch it, shitty Ripples! That's my _face_ you almost smacked!"

Surprised at having caught _both_ of his siblings in his trap—one he'd been fairly positive wouldn't even work to begin with, too—and content with letting the two bicker for a moment, Luffy finished licking the marrow out of a deer's thigh bone. When the arguing and curses started to peter out, the dragon jumped from his perch hidden up high and glided over to where Ace and Sabo hung. (He'd gotten much better about gliding in tight spaces and had more control over his landings now. Lu still had trouble with flying—not having achieved that feat yet—but possessed a better idea of the mechanics behind it at least.)

Ace noticed the incoming fire-breathing lizard at the same time Sabo caught sight of a thin-ish, hollowed-out log. A hollow log which is propped up by a small pile of rocks and has one of its ends pointing directly at him and Ace. Landing with a trotting stop, Luffy eyed his suddenly quiet brothers before strutting over to the other end of his log. Ace and Sabo shared a mutual feeling of apprehension upon seeing a devious light in the youngest's amber gaze.

/( _AnxiousWorry_ ) Waves, tell me again _why_ we thought it a good idea to teach Light how to make snares? /

/( _WorryConfusionApprehension_ ) It's not like Lu's ever been good at them before!/ At that moment, said brother came to a halt behind the tube-like log and Sabo's eyes widened in dawning horror, the blond's intelligent mind whirling to a sudden conclusion. /( _DreadWorryhorrorDislikefear_ ) I don't think the _snare_ is the worst of our problem here… /

"Wha—?" Ace bit down on the question as confusion gave way to knowledge when he saw the tiny smirk curling the corner of Lu's 'lips'. What really clarified their (Ace and Sabo's) situation was seeing Luffy—basking in his sibling's growing dread and mild fear for a scant few seconds—folding his limbs to lay down at the log's opening.

More specifically: putting his mouth at the hollow, dead piece of tree's opening opposite the one facing the blond and freckled brothers.

"C-c'mon, Lu! You're not still mad about this mornin', are ya?" Ace gulped nervously at the _look_ the dragon sent him. _'For being an overgrown lizard without any eyebrows it sure feels like he raised one condescendingly just now! Smug little bastard!'_

Catching the gist of Ace's thoughts, Sabo chuckled at his brother's silent fuming. Those chuckles died as he noticed that black, toothy maw opening and drawing in a deep breath. "O-oi, Light, can't we talk about this? We only teased you a _little_ about your size. Nothing to warrant this, right?"

Luffy glared at his brothers. Yes, they deserved this punishment because they (as mentioned) made fun of how small he became compared to his actual size—which wouldn't have ticked the dragon off so much if it hadn't been right after being cooped up on a damn ship for three stressful weeks—and then ruined some of his best flight attempts. The two idiots also took too long to come back and Luffy would've started getting worried if he hadn't sensed the near-constant _finerelaxed_ from their bond. (The fledgling also wanted to take out his current frustration on something and Ace and Sabo happened to be the unlucky winners of that lottery.)

 **"Mmm…no,"** Luffy 'smiled' at his big brothers. Taking another deep breath, inwardly patting himself on the head, the dragon sang **, "The islands in the south are warm~ Paina puru puru~"**

Normally, Sabo and Ace loved listening to Luffy sing; he sounded great in either form, though his dragon one always sounded the best. Thanks to his species' anatomy, Lu could make sounds and reach pitches no other creature could. His rubber power only added to the wide array, making him even more unique amongst others of his kind. In this form, there's likely no pitch Luffy couldn't reach or sound he couldn't perfectly mimic.

 **"Their heads get really ho~hot~ and they're all idi~ots!"**

This is definitely not one of those pleasurable times! The song is damn annoying on a good day—Ace compared it to an immortal mosquito that buzzed in your ear all night and _would_ _not DIE_ no matter how many time you set its buzzing insect ass on fire!—when Luffy sang it semi-nicely. Right now, the stupid, conniving, evil little Drakkón Ace and Sabo called "brother" was trying to melt their ears off!

 **"Second verse! The islands in the north are cold~ Hyakkai koi koi~"**

Seriously, this was a level of torture they were sure should only be reserved for enemies! Neither knew Lu could even _sound_ this horrendously shitty when he sang!

 **"Their heads shiver all around~ and they're all idi~ots~!"**

"Fuck! Please make it stoooooop," Ace moaned, hands clasped tight over his ears to block out the wailing noise—there's no fucking way in blazing hells he'll _ever_ call this " _singing_ ".

Sabo was busy mumbling nonsense and trying to drown out the _noise_ while his hands occupied the same task as Ace's.

Fat lot of good it did them.

 **"Third verse! The islands in the east are wet~ Grawp grulu grulu~"**

"Lalalala! My brain isn't turnin' ta sludge~! Lalalala," Sabo chanted—or prayed.

 **"Their heads get all soggy~ and they're all idi~ots!"**

How in the hell could there be no constant beat or tone or pitch to this?! Everything was jumbled up and ever-changing. If Ace were capable of a complete thought at the moment, he'd consider a ton of pots and pans banging down a flight of stairs to be more musically-inclined (and audibly pleasant) than _whatever the fuck_ Luffy's currently doing.

 **"Fourth verse! The islands in the west are dry~ Shyaska shasa shasa~"**

"Gyaah! My brain's leaking outta my ears!"

"Lu, we're going braindead!"

 **"Their heads are full of sand~ and they're all idi~ots~!"** Luffy paused to 'grin' up at his brothers.

Blood pounding in their ears from being hung upside-down so long, and ears themselves aching from the abusive racket, Ace and Sabo slowly opened their eyes. Both sets landed immediately on the dragon with one paw resting on top of his end of the log—or torture device, as the older teens officially dubbed it.

 **"Again,"** Lu semi-asked, an eager expression on his scaly face.

"NO!" both 17-year-olds shouted in horror. They would've paled at the suggestion except that is an impossibility thanks to their bodies' current orientation.

Ace continued, rather franticly, "We're very, very sorry for making fun of your size, Light! Honest! We learned our lesson!" Sabo nodded along desperately, eyes wide and pleading.

"We're also very sorry for taking so long to get back," the blond added quickly. "There's a good reason though! And we will tell you as soon as you let us down because we know you'll love it!" This time Ace is the one doing a bobble-head impersonation.

The fledgling thought over his siblings' words, tail flicking idly behind him. Cocking his head, Luffy asked **/( _InterestCurious_ )** **Really? /** Ace and Sabo nodded enthusiastically, hair waving wildly in the air. **/( _Pleasure HappyExcitement_ ) Okay!/**

The older pair of siblings sighed in relief. Finally, the torture was over! Once he felt sure that his brain hadn't, in fact, been reduced to grey sludge, Sabo had half a mind to lock Luffy in a (soundproof or isolated) room with someone they wanted to interrogate. A repeat of that… _performance_ would have the hardiest and most stubborn of individuals singing like little tweety-birds after just one round. Maybe two for the truly hardcore.

"I know what you're thinkin', Waves, and if you ever use whatever your soggy head is scheming against me, your toast," Ace hissed. Speaking of toasting things—

Halfway up the tree holding the rope his brothers dangled from, Luffy looked down and moaned at the loss of his hollow log-tube-noise-enhancer toy being reduced to ashes. Sabo stared at the remains of the torture device. Turning a flat glare on Ace, he awkwardly used his free leg to kick Ace and make that smug smirk of joyous satisfaction twist to a confused and pained grimace. (Yes, he used _kiví_ to make sure it was a solid hit.)

"What the he—!" Sabo kicked his brother again.

"Retarded pyro-pants! Why didn't ya do that _before_ our grey matter tried to leak outta our ears?!"

Ace valiantly attempted to push Sabo away from him, trying to block the younger's flailing kicks with his own leg. Too bad they were both still strung-up by the same loop of rope like a couple hunks of meat; not much room to maneuver or get away. Meanwhile, Luffy sat on his perch next to the rope holding his Treasures captive. It was just too fun watching them go at each other to end it so soon.

 _'Wonder why_ Atce _just doesn't burn the rope… He burnt my toy…_ ' For someone made of _fire_ , his brother seemed to forget his ability at the oddest times. What made it even better is that even Sabo seems to have forgotten as much too.

The back and forth, awkward battle of shoving and kicking had the hanging brothers spinning and swinging. Curses and jabs were thrown at one another and Lu really wished he had a way to save the spectacle. True, the fledgling could share the memory with his siblings, but he wanted to be able to share it with others as well. Maybe next time, the three of them fought often enough for this to be a rather regular event (if a bit more ridiculous than most). Seeing that they wouldn't be finishing any time soon, and Luffy _really_ wanted to know what Sabo was talking about earlier, the dragon held a forepaw over the rope drawn across the trunk next to him. Pressing the tip of a talon to the woven fibers, the black dragon returned his gaze to the quarreling pair below as he lightly began sawing at the rope.

"Wait," Sabo paused in attacking as he caught sight of the destroyed log. Ace guardedly eyed the blond as the younger continued, "Why haven't you torched the—"

 _Snap!_

"Ga-oof!" The two landed in a heap, arms bracing their impact at the last second.

"Rope," Sabo finished with a grunt.

"Can I say, 'cause of Lu, my brain got scrambled and liquidated—"

"Liquified."

"Yeah, that," Ace muttered, flapping a hand.

"Feh, sure," Sabo mumbled. At least Ace hadn't noticed it'd taken Sabo so long to remember. Just in case, though: "Same here."

Luffy scrambled down to sit next to his soul-siblings, eager to see what the day had held for them now that all the fun has passed.

* * *

After Sabo explained what he and Ace had discovered and laid out their (Ace and Sabo's) basic plan to avenge Luffy's honor—or something along those lines, the dragon had tuned out the rant by that point—they spent some time grooming Luffy. He really needed it by that point, what with all the pitch, pieces of bark, bits of dirt, leaves and grass stuck to his scales and trapped under them.

During the grooming, the three discussed the finer workings of their hodgepodge plan against Toad-Face's lackeys and the Whitebeard Pirates. When they finished talking about that, Sabo told Lu about how the three of them would also be helping the townspeople with rebuilding. Luffy wasn't as certain about this until Ace explained that by helping they hoped the villagers would be willing to help the brothers out in turn. Sabo subtly mentioned that the inn also had an old piano and that the person who usually played it during the evenings had been injured in the storm. The dragon lit up at the prospect of playing the instrument—"You have to ask first, Lu."—and readily agreed.

When done with taking of their little brother, the three quickly rousted some boars and went to the nearest strip of beach to roast them. (The bonfire would've been too big to safely have amongst all the close trees. Ace wanted to spend the time chilling with his siblings and not paying attention to every spark that cracked from the fire in the off-chance it ignited something.) The place they chose was a flat and more level stretch of pebbly beach at the island's tip. The strip wasn't as wide as where their boat had landed but it did sport the trailing end of the brook they'd been drinking from. It's width also meant Lu could remain hidden in the bushes while still staying close to his brothers (and the roasting food) on the beach—he wasn't happy about the separation, but he would deal until the sun sank and the sky grew dark.

While the meat cooked, Luffy regaled his brothers with how his day went; sharing memories of his mishaps (which had Sabo and Ace in stitches with laughter) and how he planned to be flying by that night. Sabo told the dragon that would be in all their best interests. When Ace asked for him to elaborate, the blond explained that, at earliest, they could expect the Whitebeards to show sometime the day after tomorrow. Luffy laughed when the freckled raven scowled and muttered about the crew being "a bunch of nosy bastards" and hoping "a Sea King ate 'em". Sabo only sighed and commented that he sincerely doubted they'd be gotten rid of that easily.

("Well maybe it was a _big_ Sea King. Or a sea dragon!" The blond just shook his head while Luffy got excited over the idea of a sea dragon being nearby.)

* * *

" _Lú_ , not that I doubt ya or anything, but are you sure _this_ is the best way?" Ace flatly eyed the blond standing next to him.

"If you've got a better idea for launching lizardbutt sky-high, we're all ears." Sabo grumbled but didn't otherwise answer.

Luffy, still in his reduced 6-foot form, had a clawed forepaw sunk into the upper reaches of two trees and his hind ones firmly grasping the sides of another at ground-level. The tree Luffy's rump pressed against was positioned fairly close to the two in front of the dragon, allowing his intended angle of ascent to be more vertical versus horizontal. These particular trees were chosen due to their proximity to the water (and facing the opposite direction from the town), their sturdiness and the two forward trees' lack of low-growing limbs.

The sun had set an hour-ish ago just as some clouds rolled in. A Wisp hovered by both anchored paws in the two lead trees so that Luffy could better see where he was going to be rocketing towards. Another pair floated around the two older brothers standing near the straining dragon. The excited fledgling checked and re-checked his positioning while Sabo scrutinized the dark sky above.

"Suppose good news is, unless they have heat-vision, nobody will be able to spot you up there."

/( _Disappointment Dislike_ ) That includes us, doesn't it?/ Receiving a nod, Ace moaned, "Dammit. I wanted to see his first time!"

Sabo snorted and tried to muffle a chuckle. The fire-user raised a brow and the black dragon paused in his activity, both staring quizzically at their blond sibling.

Hiding most of his thoughts, Sabo glibly replied /( _Amused_ ) _Atce_ , dearest soul-brother of mine, please review your previous statement./ Luffy didn't understand what his older brother was implying however the same couldn't be said for Ace.

A light blush sprouted on freckled cheeks, embarrassment twining with the teen's natural scent and also echoing through their mental link. Aiming a punch at the younger's shaking shoulder, and missing when Sabo dodged, Ace went after him as he shouted /( _Embarrassmentdislike_ ) Shut up, _Sávbó_! Your foam-filled head spends too much time floating in the gutter! /

Lost at what had Ace worked up and Sabo found humorous, Luffy grumbled to himself before making sure everything was ready. Tucking wings in tight as he possibly could, hindquarters and front hunkered down against his anchor, amber eyes set on the dark gap between the trees' boughs overlooking the beach, Lu warbled and 'prodded' his quarreling siblings in warning. Ace and Sabo looked back in time to see their baby brother's scaly form shooting off into the dark sky.

* * *

Ace and Sabo ran to the beach, the former absently dismissing the two Wisps floating in the trees and one of the two following after them. Standing there, they searched the sky for a hint of their little brother's small, shadowy form.

/( _FrustrationWorryUnhappy_ )/ "Tch! We can't see anything up there!"

"I _told you_ we wouldn't, flame-brain," Sabo grumbled. Contrary to his point, blue orbs intensely scanned the darkness above with the same emotions rolling through them as Ace's.

It's a perfect night for Lu's first official flight. A light breeze played among the treetops and small waves lapping at the pebbly beach. Clouds blanketed a majority of the sky, only small cracks and breaks here and there allowing snatches of starlight through. If there is a moon out, and Sabo can't recall if there's supposed to be one at all that night, then it's well-hidden. Even at full-size the blond sincerely doubts he and Ace would be able to pick Luffy out against the dark backdrop. So yes, it is indeed a perfect night for a black-scaled dragon to learn to fly.

That didn't stop Sabo from feeling slightly jilted—robbed. Or Ace.

They wanted to watch their little Treasure, their guiding light, as he took this huge step in life. To share the experience in some way besides through vague impressions and emotions transmitted over a shapeless bond. Something _physical_ with a physical form—a thing they could actually _see_. The bond is nice and everything, but right now it felt… _lacking_ without the visual evidence to tie and cement these bursts of feeling in the older pair's minds. Both brothers kept searching the sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of Luffy.

 _'Least nothing bad has happened yet…_ ' Though he stayed in the general area, Sabo could sense Lu getting further away from the beach bit by bit. The blond doubted it to be intentional and despite wanting to call out and check on the fledgling, he refrained from actually doing so.

They'd all agreed that Ace and Sabo would only lightly monitor Luffy, letting the dragon focus without interrupting and potentially sabotaging any chance of success. So it was as Sabo hovered at the fringes of Lu's mind, conscious Ace to likely be doing the same, that he became aware of a shift in their little brother.

Where almost immediately after getting airborne Luffy had gone relatively 'silent', there were ripples of muted excitement and wonder now echoing in the blond's mind. The bursts grew brighter, stronger; Sabo became split with wanting to laugh in joy—because it meant _Lú_ is _flying_!—and curse in frustration and anger—because his Treasure is flying and he's _fucking_ _missing it_!

"Damn swirly-eyed, overgrown, shitty little salamander!" Sabo turned to look at Ace and found his brother, smiling face full of pride and delight, shaking an angry fist at the heavens.

 _'Of course he went with both_ ,' Sabo sweatdropped. He had to laugh at the unusual dichotomy between the ongoing angry rant and sense of _happyproudlovejoy_ stemming from Ace. The blond, distracted by the fiery teen's antics, almost didn't notice something unusual happening with Luffy.

Twisting to scour the skies for a certain shadow, Sabo called out, " _Atce_ , you feel that?"

"Huh?"

The emotions and impressions had escalated, no longer vague and fleeting, winding around each other to form a silent lilting tune that drifted across the bond. They grew louder, the hauntingly enchanting melody swirling about in a beautiful dance that threatened to ensnare Sabo if he let it trickle too far into his conscious. Ace had gone quiet, confusion and worry barely reaching Sabo beneath the rising notes' _—'No…song. This is Light_ singing _!'_ —the _song's_ rising volume. As the intensity and 'sound' increased to a fever pitch, a…film, for lack of a better word, encased the dragon's mind.

/( _ConcernWorryFear_ )/ "Waves… What just happened? It's loud and ringing in my ears one second and the next it's…" Ace's confused voice trailed off.

Reaching out, the blond probed the edges. Luffy is still _there_ , his mind hasn't disconnected from them and the song hasn't stopped. They're both just—

"Muted," Sabo muttered. Not in a bad way like Ace's had been after being kidnapped, though. The 'song' still hummed enticingly in the background and Luffy's presence in Sabo's mindscape hasn't dimmed. The film separating them also didn't seem intentional, more a byproduct of whatever is occurring with their dragon. _'Dragon…Luffy…_ '

Eyes widening, Sabo quickly thought over his theory before gesturing for Ace, who'd been getting very antsy and starting to emit waves of worry and fear, to calm down.

"Is he okay?! Nothing's happened, right?"

Grabbing the raven's shoulders, halting the other's frantic pacing, Sabo calmly replied, "I'm sure he's fine, _Atce_ —"

"Then what happe-ow! Ow ow ow," Ace chanted in pain.

Pinching his brother's ear, the younger ground out, "Let. Me. Finish!" The freckled male nodded eagerly. Letting go of his victim, and ignoring the glowering pout sent his way, Sabo continued, "I believe he's simply caught up in his instincts, nothing major or overly concerning as of yet. He hasn't left the area and, should we really need to, I'm fairly certain we can get through that weird film-thing covering him."

Uncertain grey orbs flickered between him and the clouds hanging high above the sea. "So, we…?"

Shrugging, he answered, "I suppose we let him be and work it out of his system. He's not blocking us outright. _Lú_ 's just—" _unaware of us_ "—a little distant right now." He doesn't want to voice those other words; give form and weight to them. Make them realer than they have to be.

Ace merely huffs but quietly goes back to (fruitlessly) searching out Luffy's figure. The tense set of his shoulders tells Sabo he knows what the younger didn't say.

Neither is comfortable with the knowledge and what it means. How it reflects the differences between them and Luffy—Human and Drakkón. Differences that are unbridgeable gaps no matter what they may try. Sabo recognizes he and Ace can make the detestable divides smaller, fill them in so they aren't as wide or deep…

But they'll never truly close. _Disappear_.

Looking in the direction he can sense Lu, listening to the beautiful 'song' softly ringing in his ears, Sabo again is filled with a sense of pride, love and happiness for his little brother. (It almost smothers the ache in his chest and the phantom shadow of something precious—something he never got the chance to have—being taken from him.)

Sighing, he heads back into the woods to retrieve the stupid rucksack from where Ace ditched it before running to the beach.

* * *

The black fledgling kept his wings bunched tight to his sides as he rocketed through the air, wanting to get every bit of height his launch afforded him. At the very apex Luffy quickly snapped out his wings, stretching them wide to catch the air. Working off what he learned that day, he calmed his mind and closed his eyes.

Luffy kept his wings spread, not flapping them quite yet, and ghosted through the sky. The clearing hadn't offered much room to freely maneuver and correct whatever inconsistencies developed during his tries. His mind had been too busy trying to solve a puzzle that something in him felt should be as natural and easy as breathing. So now, putting away everything, the dragon just _felt_.

Wind rushed over him, weaving through mane and gliding over scale and membrane. Breathing deep brought in the scent of cool, vaporous water from the clouds above and the salty tang of the sea speeding below. Breathing out had a fleeting cloud of warmth trail along his snout, swiftly vanishing as his wings carried him away. The muscles of Luffy's tail contracted and stretched, the appendage neatly moving through instinct to keep his glide stable.

Shifting his attention towards his wings, Lu felt the cool wind sweeping across both sides of the dark, leathery membrane. Concentrating on that sensation, losing himself in the wind rushing around him, the dragon slowly twitched his third set of limbs into the barest hints of a flapping motion. It took a minute, repeating the half-motions a few times, before he put more power into the gesture and quickly pushed down on the flowing air. Wings dipping as they shoved the air behind him, he automatically raised them forward and up to keep himself stable. The black dragon did this a few times, half-pushing down then re-stretching the wings back out to the sides, when golden orbs opened and saw the muted shimmer of seawater growing gradually closer.

The fledgling didn't like that. Instinct surged to the fore and he listened to its whispering call, eyes no longer aimed at the sea but the sparsely lit sky—freedom!—instead.

Black wings cupped and shoved the air down as well as driving it behind, thrusting the dragon up and forward. 'Wrist' and 'elbow' followed the new motion, 'fingers' half-closing together as the strong joints bent and folded right before jutting forward and up; the limbs stretching and reaching further than during those half-flaps as they unfolded opened to fully to grasp and cup the new air. The foreign-but-not movement was jerky at first; stiff and unknown but somehow familiar and right. Flounderings were few, no panic felt with all the open space surrounding him and offering all the time needed to _get this right_! Over several minutes, caught and tangled in the hum of wind, pumping blood, lungs expanding and contracting, thundering heart and instinct, the black dragon's movements smoothed and evened.

Warmth began to bubble and boil in his chest, heart pounding, as awareness of something both special and monumental crawled into his mind. The new intense feeling burbled alongside the almost-hypnotizing call of sky and instinct; the surprise it brought snapping gold orbs away from the dark heavens, redirecting to the expanse of sea below.

The sea _far_ below!

Shock had the dragon faltering for a brief second before righting himself once more. Then the full blast of _exactly_ what he is doing slammed into the fledgling. Flying.

He is _flying_! Not gliding. Not slowly falling. _Flying!_

He wanted to spin and dance in joy! Not like how Humans and those restricted to land, the way _Drakkón_ do. A _real_ dance that he's ached to perform for ages whenever he felt so overjoyed and happy in the past.

Adrift in this new experience, a wordless song echoes the dark figure's flight; the fledgling barely remembering to keep the volume down so that it's shrouded in wind. Soft notes of the enchanting chimes and whistles loop and twine with wind. Small barks and wavy warbles add to the leaping and excited, joyous tunes. His mind and heart are overflowing with the sense of freedom and empowerment being able to touch the sky brings him.

The dragon basks in the wind whipping against his face. The sensation of cool air sliding through the nooks and crannies of his scaly body as his figure cuts through it. Feeling the twinge and ripple of muscles in his chest and back that coincide with the flapping of inky-black wings. Ghostly whispers of promises offered in the powerful beating of those leathery limbs and the sky cradling him.

Awash and lost in this euphoria, it takes a while before the dragon's sight snags on a dim blue light. Black slit-pupils narrow slightly at the glow, a bead of knowledge wriggling in the back of the fledgling's head as he stares. Important, something about that blue light is important.

 _Grey eyes in a freckled face framed by wavy dark locks. Blue eyes with a faint darker ring along their edges, one scarred and sometimes hidden behind light golden hair. Two soft and loving smiles radiating_ family _and_ home _..._

Whipping himself around, Luffy pumped his wings and hurtled towards that glow—towards his _brothers_!

* * *

Sweep. Scritch. Scritch.

"He's been up there a while…"

"Mm."

Scritch, sweep, scritch.

"You sure—"

"He's fine, Ace. Let him be."

Sweepsweep. Scritch, scritch, scritch.

In the dim light of a Wisp, Sabo scratched a pencil across the sheet of thick paper in his lap while absently listening to Luffy's song. Ace, tired of vainly examining the dark skies in hopes of spotting an equally dark shape, dejectedly ambled over to sit by the blond. Looking at the fist-sized Wisp and the poor lighting it gave, the freckled teen brightened it.

"Thanks," Sabo murmured as the older plopped down beside him.

In the blond's lap sat a large notebook open to a set of pages. The left one bore a carefully drawn landscape-oriented picture of a particular trio of brothers. Broken trees, tussled earth, shattered rock, small fires and throwing-knives dotted the surrounding area. One figure was frozen in time in the air, a fist cocked back and the other hand held out in front with its fingers spread. Another was caught between one step and the next as they ran across the ground, an arm raised up to brace for a punch that won't come, the other readying a pipe to deflect a nonexistent fireball. The third figure's crouched, stance defensive and expectant, frozen flames at their feet and wrapped around fists stuck mid-thrust. It would've depicted a serious fight between enemies out to destroy each other…if not for the excited and carefree grins the three figures sported.

Ace smiled, unease temporarily forgotten at the familiar scene. _'It's been too long since we last sparred._ ' Those little skirmishes aboard the _Moby Dick_ didn't count, either. _'Can't have one here, though._ ' The fire-user didn't believe the villagers residing on the island would appreciate the collateral damage involve. _'Light one on a beach might be fine_ ,' he mused, grey orbs flicking to the book's newest addition on the right page.

His mood immediately tanked, reminded of something unpleasant, as Sabo worked on the developing picture. The wordless, emotion-rich song ringing in the back of his head and the uncomfortable, somehow-oily-but-not film separating him from properly connecting with Lu nagged at Ace again.

/( _DoubtUncertaintyfearAnxious_ )/ "Feels like he's flying away from us." _Leaving them behind_ , he wants to say but holds back at the last second. Sabo's pencil strokes slow, face staying tilted down towards the nearly complete scene on the page.

"I have sincere doubts that will ever be the case," he finally says, voice steady and even. The top hat's resting on the rucksack behind them, but the blond curtain of wavy hair is blocking blue eyes and most of the younger's face from sight. However, he _can_ see the flat line of Sabo's mouth and the minute tightness around it. Sabo's also trying to hide the same concern Ace feels, instead projecting a (weak) sense of confidence in his words.

Grey eyes pointedly flick down to the drawing before stating, "But you do have them." The blond's lips curl at the edges to form a light frown, hand holding the sketchbook gripping it a little tighter.

Sabo doesn't say anything in reply and quietly continues working on his latest sketch. That's fine, Ace wasn't expecting his younger brother to do otherwise. The picture forming under the blond's guidance is proof enough that he feels the same as Ace.

On the page, mapped out in pencil, is a dark, pebbled beach under an equally dark and cloudy sky. A small Wisp illuminates two figures sitting on the shore, backs to the viewer and facing the inky sea; neither are wearing hats but Ace knows it's him and Sabo by the clothes. The low light and heavy shadow playing over their forms shows the tension and fear hidden in the seated figures. Out over the dark and still sea, Sabo sketches the flowing tail of a familiar dragon; Luffy frozen in a gliding turn, his head and neck angled away from the beach and leading the scaled body further out to sea.

Overall, it's a depressing scene.

"'Least it ain't in color," the raven mutters, tossing his hat atop Sabo's and laying down, hands pillowing his head from the hard stones. Staring morosely up at the dark heavens, he heard the scratching of pencil on paper pause for a second before a dry chuckle sounded from his brother.

Ace could tell Sabo was about to say more when the melody in the back of their minds suddenly…he wanted to say _warped_ or lost a piece of its fluidity. Both shot to their feet in alarm, the blond hastily thrusting his notebook at the sack and out of the way, wondering what had happened to their baby brother. The pair scanned the skies, worry mounting when they found that the weird film surrounding Lu's mind was still intact. A handful of nerve-wracking moments later a shrill cry reached their ear followed quickly by the sound of flapping wings, a body hitting the beach and rocks scattering several yards away.

The skittering of small claws over rock changed to a much heavier thumping and, before the two siblings could take a step, a huge shadow burst into the Wisp's light. Crying out in surprised shock, Ace and Sabo were nearly bowled over by the rushing dragon's sliding stop. As it was, the older teens received a rough meeting with solid muscle that had them stumbling back a few feet. Disoriented, Ace tried to parse out what was up with Luffy's behavior.

"The hell, Lu~U-WHAT'RE YOU—?!"

"SHI—!"

Not even getting a moment to breathe, Ace felt teeth snagging his shorts then butterflies in his stomach as he got flipped unceremoniously onto a hard surface. With his face buried in something very soft and sort of fluffy. The fire-user only got a tiny moment to ponder that, mind trying to catch up with everything, before something else—Sabo to be precise—landed on _him_.

"Geh!"

"Ack!"

Sabo didn't even have the chance to move off Ace—and remove that bony damn elbow digging into the freckled teen's back!—when the surface he'd fallen on began _moving_. Fast! Reflexively clutching and clinging to the strands of fuzzy softness, the thing he was on began making jerky, leaping movements that threatened to dislodge the two teens.

It was at this particular point in time that Ace's brain oh-so-helpfully informed him that he and Sabo were on Luffy's back. Ace next became aware of the two large wings' strong flaps timed with what he correctly assumed to be Lu's jumps. Both still confused over the swift change from sitting on the beach to clinging to their little (now very _big_ ) brother's back, Ace opened his mouth to ask what the hell Luffy was trying to do. Unfortunately, he'd waited too long and the only thing that came forth was a harsh and staggered gasp—probably because his stomach disappeared that very moment.

A third jump, accompanied by a splash of water and quick succession of deep, strong flaps, had thrust Luffy's large body skyward. (Ace didn't know if the high-pitched whine was purely in his head or coming out of Sabo next to him. It couldn't be coming from _him_ because his heart currently resided in his throat. From the _terrorpanicconfusion_ emitting from Sabo, Ace figured the blond to be in much the same predicament.)

Rushing wind and snapping- _fwoosh_ of leather wings filled his ears as the trio ascended for what felt like an uncomfortable eternity. Gripping Lu's mane like his life depended on it, Ace's panic-driven anxiety didn't subside until an incessant 'poking' at his mind begged attention. However, the fire-user still hesitated opening his eyes— _'When the hell did I close them?'_ —in the off chance his heart turned traitor and ditched him like his still absent stomach. Sabo's exclamation a second later, and the slight shaking of his shoulder which he _did not appreciate right now_ , finally convinced the raven it was safe to look around.

"Amazing! _Atce_ , ya gotta see this!" Freckled face lifting from where it'd been firmly buried in Lu's mane, Ace's grey eyes slowly opened and peaked warily around.

At first, Ace couldn't see anything. There was barely any light and even Luffy's scales right in front of him were nigh on invisible. Then a second, more insistent, poke and prod at his mind made Ace realize that Lu has been asking/trying to 'link' with him (the teen hadn't noticed through his earlier panic and fear). Right as he said yes, Ace also became aware of two things: the disjointed 'warp' in the dragon's mental song had disappeared, becoming smooth and seamless once more, and that stupid 'film' was still there.

 _'If Lu's still unaware of anything outside of his instincts_ ,' Ace pondered, remembering Sabo's take on the matter, ' _then why'd he come back?'_ It was his last thought before the mental-link with Lu solidified and he got slammed with a new point of view. Literally.

And the overlay of sight on inky darkness took his breath away.

Between one heartbeat and the next, Ace went from barely making out the slightly lighter shadow of his hand fisting locks of pitch-black mane...to abruptly looking at the expansive ocean below them. _Way_ below them. The view shifted from the dark rippling pattern of the sea and swung up to focus on the patchwork of cloud hanging over them. Then the muscles under Ace's body flexed as their dragon tilted sideways a fraction that had them performing a wide, gliding turn, the slight wobble in the maneuver making his knuckles ache as he tried holding on tighter to his brother's mane. It also unleashed a flurry of butterflies to storm Ace's stomach—a flicker of _'Hey, it's back!'_ skittering randomly across the fire-user's thoughts—and caused him to mirror Sabo's sharp, nasal inhale. Any discomfort was immediately forgotten when Ace 'saw' the shadowed shape of the island against the surround water.

"Wow," left his lips in awed, breathless whisper. Sabo sniggered beside him.

/( _Amused_ ) That's all you can say?/ Ace _would've_ elbowed the snickering idiot in the ribs if he could get even one hand loose from their death-grip.

He settled for a growl and sarcastically quipped /( _Annoyed Quiet!_ ) Sorry, not all of us are walking dictionaries!/ The scaled hide rippling with light shakes almost had the raven spewing a startled 'eep'. (Keyword: almost; Sabo and he did share a startled, panicky gasp as they reflexively tried to become one with Lu's back.)

 **/( _AmusedFunny JoyExcitedLoveHappy PrideFreedom!_ )/**

Ace and Sabo slowly stopped their imitation of stubborn leeches and relaxed; the shaking had been Lu laughing. Luffy's response also brought to the older raven's attention the fact that the 'song' had gotten louder and fuller, though refrained from completely drowning the two teens in its flow. The stupid film lying over their little brother's mind remained as well, but seemed somehow… _more_. Like an extra layer of haze rested under it.

/I think _Lú_ 's holding it back. Trying to keep us from being overwhelmed./ Ace frowned at Sabo's explanation.

What if he (they) didn't _want_ Luffy to hold back? What if they (he) wanted to be as close to Luffy as possible? Sharing this moment the way the dragon obviously wanted to with them? (Lu _had_ come back to snatch he and Sabo off the beach, after all.)

A spark of interest and hesitant hope wafting across his mind let him know that Luffy had picked up on his thoughts—Sabo too; the sensory-link made it easier to glimpse one another's thoughts. Ace and Sabo groaned as their dual-vision shifted to showcase them clinging to the area between the dragon's shoulders. It was a little disorienting to 'watch' themselves from Lu's point of view like this and they thanked Luffy when their dragon's gaze returned to the island. The raven felt his slightly younger brother deliberating, the muscles under the two beginning to quiver with Luffy's restrained excitement.

/( _HappyExcited Agreement_ ) What're you waiting for, Light? Show us what's it like to fly for the first time!/ Sabo laughed at the ecstatic burst of happiness and joy, joined by Ace, Luffy unleashed along with a melodious trill.

Ace's head was flooded by the enchanting song of emotion in his mind and the resumed warbles, hoots, trills and humming coming from Lu. The haze vanished although that blasted film was still present, except not as divisive; less a tight, ethereal shell and now a porous membrane, becoming more inclusive of his conscious in it. Ace also grew more aware of Sabo's mind merging with the fringes of his and Luffy's, the dragon sharing wholeheartedly every bit of feeling, thought and impression the act of flying brought him. Swept along by the mental tide, Ace and Sabo gladly submerged themselves in the currents of ecstasy and euphoria.

They saw ocean and its waves flowing by beneath them. Saw the island passing under as they made wide sweeps around it, keeping away to avoid being seen (however unlikely that was). Saw faint glimmers of moonlight through breaks in the clouds, the floating masses of water vapor thinning as the night dragged on. A sense of unadulterated _freedom_ encompassed them; joy, pride, happiness and desire carrying them like the powerful wings on either side. (Ace and Sabo were distantly aware of the sensation as if it were their own bodies attached to those leathery sails.) They laughed and shouted, cried and gasped, whooped and chuckled, hummed and trilled; mixing their physical voices with the song swirling in their mind.

It lasted a full hour until Sabo—the first to start coming back to himself after seeing that small, prick of blue light on the beach for the third time—began trying to direct Luffy into landing. The bubbles of _disagreedislikerefuse_ whispering at the edges of the dragon's song disrupted the trance Ace had fallen into, causing him to retreat to his own mind as well. 'Hearing' Sabo again tell/ask Lu to land, a similar welling of discontent over leaving the air filled Ace. It's possible he's still affected by his youngest brother's feelings but he also liked being up here too much to leave right now.

The fire-user felt Sabo yank the handful of silky mane wound around his fingers before saying /( _Adamant Listen!_ ) You land right now, Lu! I mean it!/ Ace yelped when the dragon dipped his head and gave a light shake of his neck, a low growl Ace felt, but couldn't hear, vibrating against the raven teen's chest.

That stupid film blanketing Lu had come back once again, almost as strong as it'd been before the fledgling had plucked him and Sabo from the beach. However, true to the blond's words prior to their impromptu flight, it quickly weakened as Sabo argued with Luffy.

/( _WorryConcern Listen!_ ) The tide will be coming in soon and I don't want it to wash away the stuff we left on the beach. That includes our hats! Plus, you've been up here for about two hours so your wings _must_ be getting tired by now. What would happen if you fell? / _That_ seemed to blow the last dregs of the filmy barrier away.

The scaled hide under him rose and fell with the dragon's huff, a small, acquiescing whine reaching Ace's ears. The oldest sibling cursed under his breath, barely making out the startled gasp beside him, as Luffy executed a sharp bank (presumably in the direction of the requested beach). Ace was no longer able to see anything, the link connecting him to Luffy's sight cut, and the butterflies were swiftly reemerging in the pits of his stomach. It took a solid minute for him to realize that Luffy is descending, tipped-off by the change in sound of the wind rushing over/under his youngest sibling's wings. The sound changed again and now Ace could tell for certain that they were slowing and closer to the water; the hushed whisper of waves peeking through the now much quieter wind sailing passed Ace's ears. Both Sabo and Ace gave a surprised cry when Lu's upper-body swung up as the dragon gave a few hard beats of his wings, tail-end swinging underneath and smacking against saltwater.

The freckled teen registered they'd slowed considerably—half-wondering at the near-lack of any wind and puzzled over the much louder sound of water—right as he and Sabo were jostled by Luffy folding his wings. Then Sabo and he let out twin-shouts of shock and dismay, stomachs clenching at the flurry of butterflies going wild in them, as they suddenly _dropped_.

A huge splash, the large body he rode dragging to an abrupt stop, were the last things Ace was aware of as his hands were jerked free of Lu's mane and he pitched forward. Actually, that bit is something of lie. He did feel an oncoming headache that _was not_ helped by slamming and bouncing off something very hard, knocking the wind out of him. Ace also felt the moment his body hit another hard surface, seawater braking and shutting-down all forward-momentum. Shock and surprise, and the act of being winded not a second before, had the raven opening his mouth in an instinctive bid for air. Predictably, all Ace got was a lungful of nasty, salty water.

Choking on the ocean filling his lungs, Ace tried to keep the worst of his panic at bay while clawing for the surface. Or, where he _thought_ the surface might be; it was too dark and his numb body, limbs like lead, was busy sinking thanks to that damnable Devil Fruit curse.

Scared, blind, panicked, and preoccupied with choking/drowning, Ace didn't feel the hard surface the first time it bumped into him. It was the second harder bump, the large object shoving itself between his kicking legs, that caught the fire-user's scattered attention. Before his mind could freak-out further—because on top of drowning there is _something big in the water with him_ —a cloud of _calmcalmsafehelpingcalm_ washed over Ace.

* * *

Luffy felt both his brothers' alarm as the water's hold jerked him to a rapid halt. Sabo flipped forward, hitting the base of the dragon's arched neck and sliding off into the water next to him. Luffy figured Ace had loosened his grip at some point because the older D's launch had more force; the impact against Lu's neck higher than Sabo's and the dragon a whoosh of air leave his big brother's lungs. Unfortunately, the hit was more a harsh glance to the side of Luffy's neck that sent Ace several feet away at an angle before landing in the sea—Sabo had struck closer to the middle and thus didn't go anywhere.

No sooner had Ace's head disappeared beneath the waves than Luffy and Sabo were struck by a surge of _panicfearhelp!can'tbreathepanic_. The blond had just taken a gulp of air after resurfacing from the unwanted dunking, trying to cool a slightly panicky mind—his own; Sabo _hated_ getting dunked without warning—when he was assailed by the emotional onslaught. Luffy wasted no time snatching the older by his soggy shirt (teeth ripping holes in the garment in his haste), dropping Sabo on his back, then surging over to where Ace had vanished. Sabo got a brief warning to hold on before Luffy drove his head underwater, followed by his neck and upper back. The blond scrambled back to stay on the portion of the dragon's body that remained above the chilly sea, gripping the younger's mane as Luffy made jerking movements under him.

Trying to find a glimpse of his Treasure in the inky water or bump into him, swinging his head around carefully, Luffy homed-in on the other's relative location. He and Sabo made attempts to calm Ace, tell him that they were coming, were here, but nothing seemed to break through the older's haze of desperation and fear and panic.

Finally, Lu sensed movement not part of the waves and swam a few feet deeper. Sabo prepared to hold his breath in the case that Luffy needed to submerge further, the cold ocean level with the bottom of his ribs. The dragon's sensitive snout picked up the sensation of panicked movement, side of his nose butting something just before Luffy caught sight of something pale and a little lighter in the surrounding darkness. Sabo let out a relieved breath and Lu wasted no time in rescuing their Treasure. Both younger siblings projected feelings of calm and safety, letting their struggling brother know everything is going to be alright and that he's safe.

The dragon pushed aside Ace's flailing legs, uncaring of the smattering of weakened blows he received, and shoved his nose through them. Scooching forward a couple feet so that Ace—whose panic was finally receding now that he is touching Luffy—drifted to float more over his whole head, Luffy quickly swung up to get Ace free of the sea's clutches. Feeling the muscles bunch and tighten under him, and knowing what Luffy's body would do when the dragon went to resurface, Sabo took a deep breath.

With a few kicks, scaly hide undulating under the blond as water rushed around him for a second, all three siblings found their heads above water at last. Ace was sprawled limply over the dragon's big head, arms loosely looped around the obsidian horns. Breathing in to partially inflate his body, making his back widen slightly and rise a little more out of the water, Luffy carefully twisted around to set a gasping/choking Ace on his back. Sabo, clothes waterlogged and clinging uncomfortably, staggered over. Together, they quickly got their brother settled on his side and Sabo helped Ace expel the last of the sea from his lungs. Ace's drowning stint hadn't lasted more than a handful of seconds, starting from when he disappeared to when Luffy scooped him up, but neither of the younger brothers' concern and worry began to abate until the older raven's breathing turned less labored.

"W-we landed…in the…d-damn sea…why," Ace gasped, flopping onto his back. Luffy winced, a small whine building in the back of his throat.

 **/( _GuiltShame Sorry_ ) First landing on land bad. Thought water better…easier./** The dragon's original try at landing before he snatched up Sabo and Ace hadn't gone well. He'd tumbled almost immediately after touching down, sending rocks everywhere, before scrambling to his feet and rushing over to his siblings.

One hand kneading a tired Ace's shoulder, Sabo raised his other to pat Lu consolingly on the nose. Reaching up further to rub the bridge of the dragon's muzzle, the blond replied, "It's okay, Lu. You thought we'd get hurt if you tried to land on the beach and went for the water instead." Luffy nodded, miserable that he'd still ended up causing his Treasures distress. "Stop it," the blond commanded, bopping the younger lightly before resuming the soothing rubs. "The landing was bumpy and we both went for a swim, yes. Ace nor I are hurt, however, and we'll both be completely fine come morning." Said Fruit-user, having gotten his breathing fully under control, tiredly broke in to add his piece.

"Waves 's right, _Lú_. We're fine, you're fine. We don' blame ya for the crappy landing, either." He paused. "Well…it is a bit your fault but I guess ya just need to practice more," Ace finished with a cheeky grin. Both younger siblings huffed at the small joke, Sabo giving the shoulder under his hand a (gentle) smack.

"Let's just make sure the tide didn't steal our things," the blond suggested. "And ash-for-brains, dry me off already! It's freezing!" He also wanted to get to sleep soon because the backlash of connecting so deeply with Lu was starting to kick-in. Judging by the pinched look on Ace's face, Sabo assumed the older to be in the same position.

 **"Ah,"** Lu rumbled, dipping his head in a small nod. Swinging around to face the beach, and the small blue light hovering there, the dragon kicked his paws and started swimming. Hearing his brothers' assurances helped ease away the guilt and Luffy promised himself to get improving his landings (fast) to avoid a repeat of this time.

"We'll need to get up early if we want to have enough time to ready our surprise for when the Whitebeards show," Sabo said. Which meant an early night. Ace agreed almost immediately but Lu took some convincing. It ended with the older two promising that the dragon didn't have to help with the preparations after it got dark tomorrow, letting the youngest have the opportunity to go flying again (as long as Luffy stayed close to the island).

"Speaking of surprises, why is Plan A actually B and Plan B actually A? Shit's confusing," Ace muttered.

"Because A has the best chances of succeeding but," the blond shot a look at the back of the swimming dragon's head, " _someone_ wants to go with B instead and refuses to try A until then." Still sprawled across Lu's back, Ace rolled his head side to side.

"Plan A _is_ a little long-winded and complicated—"

"Is not! It's simple compared to B!"

"—and Plan B will let us have more fun anyway," Ace exclaimed, completely ignoring Sabo's comment. "Don't see what the problem is."

"The problem," the younger 17-year-old gritted out, "is that we've done it before. I doubt they're stupid enough to fall for the same trick twice." The older raven waved a dismissive hand.

"Eh, if they don't then we just go along with Plan A-that's-really-B then."

"Whatever," the blond huffed. So long as Luffy was willing to follow along things had less a chance of going haywire, that's the important bit.

* * *

Right as they were settling down to sleep in that same thicket they'd used the previous night, Ace gave the freshly groomed dragon a considering look. Luffy had been shooting his big brothers small, uncertain glances since leaving the beach. Sabo noticed that when Lu took a second to Shift and bathe in the creek, Shifting back immediately afterwards, not once had he looked at them. The dragon gave off a sense of guilt and shame that had the older pair worried he was still hung up on the crappy landing earlier. Neither liked seeing/feeling Luffy like this but, after a silent exchange, agreed to let the youngest bring it up himself.

He did so right as Sabo and Ace laid down; the blond against Luffy's side, curling into the warm belly scales, and the freckled raven stretched out along the dragon's back, hands pillowing his face atop the fluffy mane. The two were practically purring as they soaked up the warmth, Sabo more so than Ace. Once the Wisp was cancelled, plunging the three siblings into the night's darkness, a few tense seconds passed before a quiet, regretful voice broke the heavy peace.

 **"Jól t'anónornjá,"** Luffy whispered, an echo of a small whine accompanying the words. Gold eyes nervously swiveled over his bothers' shadowed forms.

"If this's 'bout the mungled landing earlier, we 'lready said it's fine," Ace muttered. He wiggled around searching for a slightly comfier position, moving one hand out from under his cheek to stroke lazily through the dragon's silky hair.

Training his gaze on the ground by his foreleg, Lu replied **/( _GratefulHappy Denial Apologetichesitantshame_ )/ **

/( _ConcernCurious_ )/ Snuggling closer to his baby brother, eyes shut, Sabo asked aloud, "Then what're you sorry 'bout, Lu?" He sighed as the heat soothed the headache throbbing in his temple.

Hearing the relieved sound, and remembering that his brothers were suffering developing migraines, Luffy withdrew a little from their shared connection. If they rested well then Ace and Sabo should be fine by sun-up. Keeping his voice at a mild whisper, forgoing the use of his native tongue, Luffy answered, **"Forgot Sun and Sea don't have wings."**

 _'Translation: he forgot we aren't Drakkón,_ ' Ace mumbled to himself. Closing his eyes, because it's not like he can see Lu well anyway with how dark it is, the raven stopped trailing fingers through the fluffy mane to pat the scaly hide. "S'okay, Light. We forget, too, s'm'times," he responded, returning to absently stroking/playing with the black mane.

"You were having fun, s'fine," Sabo agreed. Luffy didn't. At all.

 **"No! Not fine,"** he growled. Tail swishing angrily, blades at the end stretching open and folding closed, the dragon pressed on with, **"First is family! Second is flight, self and family!"**

Both blond and raven-haired Humans stilled at the angry words tinged with sorrow and self-recrimination. Apparently, this whole thing is a bigger deal than they first thought. But…

Scrunching his brows, completely confused at what has his Luffy so damn upset, grey orbs blinked at the somewhat darker shadow than the rest surrounding the brothers. "What're ya goin' on about, Lu? Wha'd'ya mean by 'first' and 'second'?"

The dragon huffed. **"First dance is with family. Second dance is with whole flight."** The low growls subsided into a tinny whine as Luffy reminisced over the beginning portion of his first time "dancing".

He'd forgotten Ace and Sabo didn't possess wings, didn't have a way of joining him in the sky on their own. A piece of him not drowned in the freedom and ecstasy of finally flying like he'd been dreaming of had been waiting. Waiting for those he viewed as 'brothers' and 'family' to dance with him. Play on the winds with him. The fledgling would've kept waiting and waiting and waiting; his instincts begging to be appeased by the presence of family and left to wonder at their absence. Even lost in those euphoric feelings, some part of Luffy's subconscious had been floundering in growing hurt, confusion and grief. Luffy felt ashamed because, for the barest breadth of a moment before spying that blue Wisp on the beach, he thought his Ace and Sabo didn't _want_ to fly with him. _Share in celebrating Luffy's first dance with him!_ So, to see that little orb of fire… To remember _what_ the dragon's precious Treasures were and not just _who_ … Luffy, still very much lost amongst his instincts, immediately set out to correct the problem.

Sensing the confusion emitting from his siblings, Luffy elaborated, **"First dance…first flight…very special. Celebrated. Only shared with family."** The dragon drooped towards the end.

Drawing little circles on the black scales, Sabo mulled over what Luffy had (and hadn't) said. _'I think I can guess what caused the "warping" in his song, now… It's a bigger milestone than we thought_.' Copying Ace's comforting gesture, Sabo patted then rubbed the ebony scales he'd cuddled up against. "But we _did_ share it, so ever'thing's good now. No'-necessary-'pol'gy 'cepted," the blond tiredly mumbled.

Ace sniggered at his younger sibling's worsening speech. It's always funny to hear how the normally most articulate of their family gets when he's sleepy.

Ruffling the mane under his wandering hand, the freckled teen tacked on, "Wha' he said, Light. Go sleep now, talk more later." Luffy rumbled in agreement, happy that his brothers weren't upset with him.

The dragon didn't feel _quite_ ready to sleep, though he's certainly close, so he decided to send his Treasures off with a gentle song. It mostly consisted of humming mixed with some low, soft and airy cooing warbles made in the base of his throat. The older pair relaxed, drifting into dreamland to the whispering tune and the thrumming vibrating through their dragon's chest and body. Sabo and Ace's last thoughts were of the pride and joy they felt at being so closely tied to their baby brother's heart—how dearly their precious Treasure loved and wanted them.

(As the dragon succumbed to sleep, the last thing skittering across his consciousness was the identity of the song he'd unknowingly shared. A lullaby _Okýsui_ would sometimes sing…)

* * *

 **A/N: Don't know if I've stated this before and am too lazy to check, but I will shamelessly play up on Ace's fire abilities any chance I get. Am a pyro myself and totally believe that, if I had Ace's powers, "fire" would be my answer to all of life's problems (and my answer to more general questions for that matter). Traffic? Not anymore! A few good blasts of some fireballs and the way is clear. Person annoying the crap out of you? Nyahahaha! Pants ablaze! Mad because you're lost in a huge ass building with way too many turns and know that if you could just go straight you'd (eventually) reach the exit? Instant exit-making ability! Bored and need a good party-trick to liven things up? Boom sparky boom boom! (Gives me a great idea for a new attack for Ace: Sparkler Bomb! It's genius!) Cops after you because it's midnight and you're going ten over the speed limit on a back road that _nobody uses anyway because there's only one person living on it_? Melt the tires! Yes people, "fire" is indeed the answer to all of life's issues! Much better than "42"; who would even bother counting that high when you can just toss a few fireballs for instant, stress-relieving fun? **

**(This rant brought to you by a curious PMer who asked about Ace and how much of a pyro-delinquent he will be. Responded that he would be similar to me if I had his abilities and felt no shame in using them. Which I wouldn't because fire is fucking awesome to play with! Only thing possibly better would be control of wind because then I would be able to fly and mess with people from afar… Yes, I am a prankster at heart. You will be seeing some a lot of my pranks throughout the story. Also those committed by my friends/family because they have made several good ones over the years, too. Wow, got sidetracked there…)**

 **Speaking of Ace, I've been thinking… He's fire, right? Made of fire, uses fire, etc. Can't he…for lack of a better word _absorb_ fire that isn't originally his to get maybe a temporary power-up? I have a scene in the next chapter where he's wielding/molding/bending (whatever term you wanna use) flames that aren't originally created by him and the thought kinda struck me that he could maybe absorb them to get a bit stronger for a short amount of time. You'll know the scene immediately and I will say that it involves Luffy (*hint hint, wink wink*). Won't say that he is able to "eat" fire, as flames are intangible, but would be funny to see Ace pretending to do so just to freak people out. Would make it realistic (as much as _that's_ possible) too if I did decide to do this. Would make certain things that I've been struggling with trying to do down the road in the story easier and more fun/interesting. Like, he'd need to absorb quite a bit of "normal fire" in order to gain any increase in power. However, absorb too much fire or too-strong of fire and he could lose control (hurting himself and/or others). Is an interesting idea and want to know what you guys think of it. If this gets a "yes, let's do it!" then I've already got several ideas storyboarded and ready to go for you!**

 **Also, I recommend watching the shows "Outrageous Acts of Science" and "Science of Stupid". Both are awesome if you want to be amazed, entertained or need a good laugh. Saw a rerun episode of OAoS where a guy created a flaming sword-thing! Looked like a lightsaber except it was a long, thin flame-torch deal. Totally forgot about it until I saw that episode again and I thought "why can't Ace do that? He's made of fire and can control flames!" So who wants to see Ace have a fire-beam-sword-thing added to his arson-al? (Get it? "Arson", "arsenal"…huh, huuuuh? If you didn't laugh or at least chuckle then XP ).**

 **Also, in answer to some other PMs I've been getting, yes: I will shamelessly play up on Marco being a bird, Luffy turning into a little troll and causing mischief and mayhem when bored (though that kinda goes for the other ASL Trio members too), Sabo's sense of humor, and (again) Ace being fire. As for Sabo's quirky sense of humor, I think it's a product of combining mine, my great great aunt's, and my great great uncle's—don't ask how it works, it…just…does. This fact surprises me a shit-ton and I've since stopped trying to make sense of it.**

 **When I realized this was occurring back towards the beginning as I planned out Sabo's character and thus brought this revelation up to Auntie and Uncle…pride. They looked so damn _proud_ (and said as much) when I told them of the story I'm writing and that one of the characters is scarily reminiscent of Uncle when he was younger and after he met Auntie. One, they're happy I'm "finally writing a darn story because [I] always tell the best kooky yarns" and "any dweebly hoonsit can putter crackpot reality mumbo-jumbo but it takes real gumption and smarts to spin a fancy tale of crazy." (Yes, Uncle really does talk like that. And Auntie. Uncle is a 92-year-old mechanic who _still_ fixes the neighborhood's, and the town at large, mechanic-related issues in the small shop in his back yard. Usually using the trading/owing-of-favors system of old instead of actual payment. He and Aunty were terrors of the town growing up and some of my pranks/stories involving ASL are influenced by what I've heard from them growing up. Come to think of it, I'm fairly certain those same stories heavily influenced my own sense of humor and love for pranks.) Two, said pair of crazy relatives are exceedingly proud that I have unconsciously modeled Sabo's (and ASL's in general) idea of humor and fun after them…and mine as well. Apparently, they were already aware of this fact while I am just realizing this—although, I suppose that would explain the number of times Mom called them up blaming them for putting ideas into my head with their "stories of the old days when people could take a joke". (Seriously, half the shit Auntie and Uncle pulled around town—on the cops no less!—would land you a one-way ticket to jail today!) **

**Auntie, after reading a couple chapters in big font because she didn't want to bother looking for her glasses and listening to my future plans of how the ASL would be interacting with the Whitebeards, even claimed Sabo's attitude is reminiscent of Uncle's when he was a "whippersnapper". I didn't believe her at first because Uncle and "perfect gentleman" don't exactly go in the same sentence unless he's fucking with you. She grinned and said—shorthand—"yup!" Laughing, Auntie admitted I was right and that _she_ was more like Sabo in attitude while Uncle acted a lot like Ace. Since I hadn't heard many stories like these, I asked for them to elaborate (and I also want to flush out the story's characters more). Uncle apparently was a very abrasive person to those who didn't know him well or he didn't especially care about (already knew that, though). However, with people he was close to or thought highly of he was far more mild and considerate of them; a rather polite and sunny, albeit mischievous, person. She, being from a slightly higher in status family, was more cool and distant and was raised to be a proper and polite young lady (didn't know the former and already figured the latter since this is way back when). Compared to Uncle, Auntie had few friends (mostly other proper girls) that she was close with and didn't act all "snooty" around. Again, small town so she knew of Uncle and met him a few times (all of which were fairly explosive encounters involving colorful verbal battles), but they didn't actually _talk_ until they were around 15…well, Auntie was about 15 and Uncle was closer to 18 or 19, I think. Then _something_ happened—they won't tell me what yet, just that Uncle and his "raggamuffiny hoodlumery" was to blame but he did help Auntie out of a tight spot—and they became almost inseparable. Auntie started secretly, then more openly, running amok with Uncle and loosened up; Uncle became less abrasive and more cordial, playing the perfect gentleman for a while to try and impress her while simultaneously causing chaos. Both evened each other out and, to most of the town's shock, got engaged a year later then married as soon as Auntie was of age (her parents were _not_ happy about their prim little princess choosing the town rascal over their picks of potential husbands).**

 **My mother wanted to know why I spent some of the holiday (when this particular chat with Auntie and Uncle took place) in bewildered state of shock (which both kooky relatives laughed at after sharing their "how we got together"). I was too embarrassed and flustered to tell Mom that, had I chosen to do this story differently (not that she knows I'm writing a story at all), I would be describing the early romance of my aunt and uncle *shudders*. So, in short, I found out Auntie acted like Sabo but had some of Ace's airheadedness while Uncle acted like Ace but had more of Sabo's more shady habits, smarts and tendency to scheme (in the name of pulling awesome pranks without getting caught). Good news: got pointers for flushing out Sabo and Ace's personality quirks. Bad news: using these renditions of Ace and Sabo in a love story is forever ruined for me. I mean permanently. If the Ace and Sabo from this story _ever_ appeared together in another that I may or may not make I can guarantee they will, at the very most, be close siblings or super good friends. _Never_ boyfriends, friends-with-benefits, or together in a sexual sense unless I give them different bases. Thanks to Auntie and Uncle's stories and comments, I see too much of them in Sabo and Ace to do such. Doesn't help that, thanks to said input from certain crazy relatives, every time I write a scene where ASL are trying to maim each other or are shouting death threats at one another I'm reminded of my aunt and uncle. With as much time as I spend talking and hanging with them, you'd thing I'd have noticed they do the same—shouting death threats at each other I mean. Auntie got in trouble for trying to chase Uncle while waving her walking cane at him as they "ran" about the house and small yard a few days back; neighbors called us up saying they were at it again, worried Auntie would throw her back out and Uncle would hurt himself trying to jump the few steps leading up to the entryway. Again. Honestly, it just sounded like the neighbors were complaining about the ruckus but they should really be used of it since they've had Auntie and Uncle as neighbors for _years_. Still, we got them to sorta re-promise to stick to verbal spars and the like from now on unless they want us to force a newer, more modern, phone on them (they use an old rotary one with the spinny-dial-wheel-thing and forked prongs that hold the speaking piece up…love how old-school it looks and really want one myself!). Uncle, while on the line with us, hollered at Auntie, "I'm in trouble thanks to you being a crazy, old bat that needs to be in a home for the weird loonies." Her response? "Docs said there ain't no more room 'cause I tried the same for your loopy sack of rattling bones!" Then she asked Uncle where he moved something and he replied the basement "right next to that dusty thing ya call a brain under those stupid curly-torture-whatsits ya wear because you think it makes yer hair pretty but just makes ya look weird and scares the knickers off kiddies." Before we hung up, seeing as Uncle and Auntie seemed to have forgotten we were on the phone, we heard Auntie holler that Uncle could fetch the thing from the basement and on his way down "I hope your wrinkly hide trips and you land with a rake up your jimmy-hole!" (Is it sad that this is how arguments usually go between them? My friends were shocked and a little horrified when they met Auntie and Uncle and played audience to one of their arguments/bickering. Family and I have long been desensitized to the pair's bickering and now we just laugh while listening, occasionally egging one or the other on and cheering/betting for our favorite like it's a game. Family has explained to numerous friends that this is just how Uncle and Aunty share their love for each other but people just look at us like we're insane.)**

 **Enough side-tracking and rambling! Long ass A/N with ton of randomness added in and I blame the late time and lack of sleep. Also worried (read: paranoid) because my best friend, who I'll refer to as Green, is out for blood after one my gifts I gave her for Christmas literally exploded in her face. I'd hidden one in the fridge at her house—her dad let me in so I could hide her presents like a scavenger hunt, which is great because some of her gifts wouldn't've fit through the doggy door—and left a note saying she should open it outside. Of course she listened, as we've made a rule that if we "recommend" something it's best we do it, and opening the gift caused it to explode chocolate pudding everywhere. Hey, sparkle bombs are messy and glitter "is the herpes of the arts and crafts world" (Green's words, not mine though I wholeheartedly agree because that shit is awful to try and clean) and I wanted to be a little original. Because I'm such an amazing, wonderful and thoughtful person, I even included a spoon in her present to help clear some of the yummy mess. (Don't worry, her gift was safely wrapped in tissue paper in a Ziploc bag that was firmly bundled in a thick layer of saranwrap.) She still has yet give me _my_ gifts from Christmas, so…yeah. My paranoia should be kinda understandable now. **

**Aaargh! Got side-tracked, again! Okay, back to story-related stuff:**

 **Got the "island song" via wiki and youtube. If it ain't completely right, sorry. That's just what I could find. Changed a couple things like what was said during the last two parts but only because I thought it might sound a bit better.**

 **For reference on how big Monroes Island is and how it looks (kinda) go to a map site and type in "San Juan Islands Guemes Island". Town and Marine base are located on the eastern beach of the northern point where the map says "Guemes Island Resort". The Whitebeards land on the western side of the point about 1 ½ miles south of the town. If you type in "7054 Channel Drive", that's where ASL landed.**

 **When Luffy "barks" I tend to think of the sound a raptor makes when they make that barky call ( www . youtube watch?v =5di1sfvLIYY, go to 1:05 min and it would be single one of those "barks"), except varying the pitch/depth depending on how loud he is and his current size. He does _not_ sound like a dog unless he purposely chooses to do so (which I will make note of). Luffy's dragon form also has a syrinx like a bird in addition to a set of vocal chords (larynx). Although most dragon species possessed both (only a few having just one or the other), the Drakkón were alone in their ability to actually speak a formal tongue—which resulted in them developing their own spoken language as well as learn to speak those of the Humans'. Because of the syrinx, many words/phrases/sounds used in the Drakkón's language are either difficult or impossible for a Human to properly pronounce. This is due to the extra sounds the syrinx is able to produce that are then layered onto the ones made by the larynx, resulting in the creation of a very dynamic, rich and expressive language. ASL has a running joke revolving around Ace and Sabo learning Luffy's language and Luffy learning that of Humans.**

 **Despite most species possessing a syrinx, only some attained the ability to mimic almost any sound they hear (like the lyrebird). Drakkón, though not the best, are still in the top ten regarding this skill (the ranking ranging between #10 to #5 or 4 based on the individual in question). Luffy, thanks to his Devil Fruit, is unique amongst his species in that he either ties with the #1 contender or can take the spot for himself.**

 **(*) Go to Google and type in "cat lying on back" and search under images. Most pictures will show how the cat tucks its forepaws up against its chest. Then there's this one that kinda shows how I envisioned the back paws to look: thumbs . dreamstime x/ cat-lying-back-13679938 . jpg (just take out spaces). Pair those with Luffy kinda sat up against the tree with a look of mild shock…yeah. Think it should be easier to envision now. Sorry if description in that part's a little shoddy.**

 **Next chapter, Sabo introduces a skill I think is pretty badass and works well with his personality. I blame several funny experiences over the years, my trip to France/Spain and the awesome movies Now You See Me and NYSM2. Won't give any more hints than that.**

 **P.S. About the mention of "Rage" and "Frenzy" below, this will be elaborated on soon(ish). I will say that, on the danger scale of 1 to 10 (1= Rainbows and butterflies, 10= Oh shit, we're all gonna die!), a dragon caught in Rage ranks about 7-8 and a dragon caught in Frenzy would be 10-11. (It really depends on the species regarding the amount of damage that can be done, but I'm sticking to the general idea of this scale applying to the adults of large species.)**

 **Terms:**

 **Kol —[kōl; like the word "coal"] Term used to indicate a sense of being filled or full of something.**

 **Okýsui —[** **ō-ky** **ē-swē; 'ký' sounds like 'k-yee'] Term for a Drakkón's biological mother.**

 **Rvýsoré —[rr-vyē-sōr-ā; 'rr' denotes a rolling of the 'r' sound; 'rvý' sounds a little like 'riv' (from "river", though with hardly any 'ih' sound) followed immediately by 'yee'] No direct translation, but—due to the deep feelings of love, protectiveness, and devotion that are always associated with the word—the closest English equivalent would be "Treasure" or "Beloved". The former is not to be confused with "treasure(s)", which usually relates and/or refers to a dragon's "horde" or something the dragon values highly. To harm/steal/destroy a Drakkón's Treasure will send them into a rage which, if not careful, can easily cause them to slip into Rage. Left in the state of Rage too long, a dragon becomes very susceptible to the danger of falling to Frenzy.**

 **The Treasure of a Drakkón differs from one individual to another but it's always something that the individual will stop at nothing to protect. It can be an inanimate object or another living being/thing. For parents, their hatchlings are considered as 'Treasures' until the young begin nearing adolescence. Those part of a "soul bond" are immediately given status as Treasure, though the bond itself is not a requirement for an individual to be a Drakkón's Treasure.**

 **Sheekyiisil —[shē-kyī-sill; 'kyii' is 'k' (like in "key") + 'y' (like in "you" or "yuck") + "eye", like instead of saying "kyaaa" (that scream-thing) it's 'ky-eye' (sorry if that makes little sense)] A term of insult with no direct translation; on par with calling someone(s) a "shitty fucking bastard", "shit-fucks", "fucking shithead asshole(s)". Not an insult to be used between friends/companions as it is only said with feelings of bitterness, dislike, loathing, etc. Usually accompanied by a growl or hiss when used.**

 **T'anónornjá —[tan-ōn-orn-jah] Term conveying sentiments of apology and/or being sorry, generally over a perceived wrong.**

 **Twedar —[tweh-dahr] Term for "poop" (i.e., feces) in the literal sense.**

 **Twédar —[tway-dahr] Reference to "poop" (i.e., feces), usually as a description for what one views a particular subject as or being like. Can be insulting but this form of the word is generally mild and only used with a sense of teasing and/or shallow exasperation/annoyance/irritation. (Similar to calling someone "a piece of poop/crap" and on the same scale as calling them "a jerk".)**

 **Twédár —[tway-dahr; 'r' in 'dár' pronounced with a growl] Not much difference to _twédar_ , except this being a harsher form of the term and used in more disparaging insults; said with more pronounced feelings of negativity and dislike. Think of it as being the difference between calling someone "a piece of poop" versus "a piece of shit".**

 **Phrases:**

 **" _Sheekyiisil kol'twédár_ "—Shit-filled fucking bastards**

 ** _"Jól t'anónornjá"_ —This-One is sorry**


	16. Whitebeards Ahoy!

**A/N: Finally! The fun chapter where we find out** ** _what_** **the Trio have planned for the poor hapless Whitebeards! Btw, idea for part of Sabo's scheme (will let you know which at the ending A/N, kinda) came from a show I saw earlier last month when celebrating a family birthday. Also helps that I think the profession (can it be called that?) is absolutely cool and something Sabo would** ** _definitely_** **try/want to learn (because who** ** _wouldn't_** **?!). Plus, it works pretty well with one of Luffy's abilities/traits that comes with being a Drakkón.**

 **Also, was checking some stuff on Rakuyo for parts of this chapter and learned that his mace/morningstar weapon thing is actually a flail. Sooo~….should I stick with calling it "Macey" (mace + thingy = "Macey"; I know, very imaginative) or call it something else? "Flaily"? "Spikey"? I want to keep it as a kinda 'girl' to stick with the whole "this weapon is my baby" vibe. Like how some people see something they value (gun, boat, car, bike, bat, etc.) and refer to it as their "precious girl" or "sweetie pie". (Have an aunt whose husband owns a vintage Mustang convertible and he** ** _swears_** **the car has feelings and always calls it his "sweet baby girl". We can tell when he drones on about the car or my aunt because my aunt's referred to as "honeybun", "honeypie", or "honeyboo". All others are related to the cherry-red Mustang. It's almost sad but I can't point fingers here; I do the same thing with my Polaris Pro and Dragon.)**

 **And heads up: Luffy and Macey/Flaily/Spikey are going to have a…** ** _interesting_** **relationship in the future. Nothing inappropriate for you gutterheads out there! It's just gonna be bumpy, rocky and funny go of things for the two (and those unfortunate enough to get dragged in).**

 **Also, once more may everyone thank MABalas for being an awesome Beta! All bow down to her might and shower her with flowers of love!**

 **Disclaimers! Ice cream sandwich disclaimers!**

* * *

 **Chapter 16: Whitebeards Ahoy! Landing Amongst Confusion**

* * *

It'd been three days since that awful storm (which almost reached the 24-hour mark) hit them. Three days since the Trio vanished (though not exactly without a trace). It took until after the storm began to subside, freeing up some of those manning the ship (including a couple commanders) to rest and walk around below, for them to notice the uncanny silence. It took an additional hour after the weather fully cleared—making it twenty-seven hours after the storm initially hit—before they realized _why_ the silence seemed odd.

Thatch had gone looking for the Trio to see if they were fine—it _was_ a huge, rather nasty, bout of weather and Luffy might've gotten a little freaked given how innocent he seemed—and find out if they (Luffy) were ready for dinner. Two hours of searching, checking their room, the places they normally frequented and places they didn't yielded a whopping nothing. Worried, the chef enlisted the help of some of his division's members (ones not on rotation for kitchen-duty) and also Haruta for a more thorough search.

Nothing.

By this time, Vista became aware of something going on and confronted the nearest member of the search party: Haruta. Discovering the reason behind some of the worried faces he'd been seeing running around randomly—Thatch being one—the Fifth Commander was quick to join his brothers' efforts.

Izou and Jiru were recruited when a flustered Thatch burst into the Commanders' Bathroom and proceeded to check each cabinet, shower stall, under benches…literally every nook and cranny in the place.

Kingdew joined after catching Haruta combing every inch of the training room he'd been in.

Namur and an assortment of other division members—those who _hadn't_ gotten barbecued by Ace and/or thrashed by Sabo or held a grudge against Luffy for some reason (the runt biting Marco, running them over, siccing those temperamental brothers of his on them, making fools of them, etc.)—began helping after a pompadoured whirlwind blew through the mess hall during the latter part of dinner.

Nothing!

Because he isn't an oblivious old geezer, in spite of him nearing seventy years in age, Whitebeard quickly grew aware of his children's increasing anxiety. Calling out to Vista, who he spotted checking a stack of empty barrels he'd spied a couple others somewhat franticly going through, the pirate captain was updated/alerted of the situation.

A swift scan of the ship with Observation Haki yielded no desired results; with his children in a frenzy and knowing how adept the Trio are at suppressing their presence, Whitebeard really didn't expect otherwise. Ordering one of his passing children to fetch Marco—the First had left to sleep in his room once it was clear the storm was ending—and for Namur to search the surrounding sea. The latter was issued in the hope that, in the off-chance the Trio had been washed into the ocean, perhaps they'd survived and were in need of rescue. Regretfully, Vista informed his father-figure that Namur had already done so; Newgate interpreted that to mean no sign off the brats turned up.

Just as the swordsman was leaving to resume with the search, a Sixteenth Division member ran by, headed for Pops. The newcomer said he'd been sent from the orlop deck to notify their father that a boat was missing from the lineup. With those words hanging in the air, a very unhappy Marco stomped up to Pops' side with a piece of paper clenched in one hand. Thatch, Izou and Namur, having seen the turbulent look of their blond brother in passing, followed behind to see why (beyond the obvious "the Trio is missing").

Thrusting the crumpled sheet into Izou's waiting hand, Namur, Thatch and Vista peering over the feminine commander's shoulder as he tried smoothing the parchment out for reading, Marco briskly snapped out, "I can't sense the three brats anywhere onboard, yoi, or close by. _That_ ," the blond glared balefully at the 'note', "was on my desk."

"What…is it?" Thatch asked, head skewed to the side and wearing a puzzled expression. Namur appeared equally as confused as Izou. They rotated the paper this way and that.

Whitebeard looked on with growing concern, eyeing the faces of the commanders on one side and keeping track of the whitening knuckles of his eldest son on the other.

"A note," Marco responded. "Probably written by Ace because it says, 'Later, ya bastards!'" Izou scoffed.

"We already figured that part out, Birdy." Turning the wrinkled sheet to face his father and brother, he pointed a manicured nail at the other thing occupying the page. "We're asking what this…thing…is supposed to be."

Marco had a vague notion as to what the "thing" depicted was supposed to be, but he refused to acknowledge the thought. Or that the drawing existed at all.

"No clue, yoi," the phoenix gritted, not bothering to look at the damnable paper.

Leaning down to better see what caused the odd expressions his children wore, and why his eldest was clearly avoiding laying eyes on it again, Newgate eyed the sheet. His face quickly matched that of the curious commanders ogling the abused piece of paper.

"Is it...exploding?"

"Perhaps it is a firework of sorts? It's not like the last note, we could tell Sabo wrote that. And I don't believe the Little One would write this."

Namur tilted his head a different way, hoping that maybe a different angle would enlighten him of the…image-thing's identity. Nope. Still looked like a round 'thing' with the upper portion exploding.

"Wait," Izou muttered, squinting at what was scribbled on the paper, "I think this 'thing' has something-no, _somethings_ poking out near the bottom part." Everyone—except Marco, who really, _really_ regretted not burning the page and just leaving the note before bringing it along—huddled closer over the mystery image; they kept their heads out of the way of Pops' eyes so the looming giant could see, though.

"I think those might be limbs, children." Whitebeard squinted at something else he saw. "Those squiggly…circles? Half-circles," or what he assumed to be an attempt at half-circles, "in the middle might be eyes…"

Haruta, who'd been walking by to go search the foremast's crow's nests, sighted the clustered forms of his fellow commanders and father. Curious about why they were standing around— _'Aren't we supposed to be looking for Fire-Fist and his brothers?'_ —wearing the most baffled faces he'd seen in a long while, and needing to update the others on his (zero) progress, he hurriedly jogged over.

Plus, he wanted to know what had (a previously frantic/panicking) Thatch so still and why Marco looked about ready to toss someone overboard.

The Twelfth Commander squeezed his way into the huddle. No sooner did he spot what had his family so transfixed than Haruta, adopting the same look as the others, added his two cents.

"The hell's with the exploding egg?"

"Egg," murmured Namur and Thatch. Canting their heads to the side, pausing for a few seconds, they said, "Don't see it."

Tracing a finger over the "exploding" bit, Haruta pointed out, "It's hard to see, but this thing kinda has the shape of an egg. Or is just a really bad circle." Looking closer, having missed them on the once-over, the youngest commander slowly asked, "Are those arms and legs on it? And…is that…a _face_?"

Frowning, Vista asked, "Where do you see a face?"

As Haruta began pointing out the supposed features of the "thing" that would make it "a-thing-that's-supposed-to-be-a-face", Newgate turned to Marco. The man had been silent the entire time and the captain wanted to know what he thought of the note in relation to the missing brats. Seeing how the commander was sending (not at all) discrete glares at the paper, scowl growing deeper and brow twitching every time one of his ship-brothers commented on the scribbled picture being a face, the large man held back a humored grin. Newgate's mood sobered when he recalled what he'd been about to ask his son.

"Marco." Said man focused on his father, scowl clearing as he adopted a more neutral expression. "When would you say they left?" Whitebeard hoped it wasn't until after the storm, though he had no clue as to how nobody wouldn't notice them leaving. He's also worried because they were blown off-course from their original destination and it would take a couple of days to get to the nearest island (which is still Monroes Island). That long in such a small boat on _this_ sea was almost tantamount to suicide. _Especially_ if two of those brats were Devil Fruit users!

The other commanders heard Pops' question and promptly switched their focus to their oldest brother. Distraction was great and all…but they were also worried as to the fate of the Trio.

Staring at the sheet of paper, a faraway look in his eye, the First Commander said, "It would be helpful to know when the boat went missing, yoi. But nobody saw the boat after the storm and no one came to my room while I was in there, meaning the note was delivered before I left the deck."

In short: they can assume the three jumped ship at some point during the storm. In a _rowboat_. Surrounded by waves that had their _Moby_ rocking precariously a few times.

The very idea of being out on the sea in a tiny boat in those conditions is absolutely ludicrous to Haruta. And Pops wanted to make them their brothers?! Lack of planning and thinking of that degree would get someone killed sooner or later![M1]

"You… Uh, you don't think they…that they _drowned_ ," Thatch spoke up, looking around with renewed worry, "right?" He didn't think any of the brothers hated being here enough to stupidly try running away into a storm of that caliber.

Ace had seemed neutral enough, slightly more willing to join in on conversations. Sabo had relaxed to the point where he didn't twitch every time Thatch (or Vista, or Izou, or Marco) would move, sometimes on accident, closer to Luffy. The blond sibling also lost some of that stiff, mocking formalness with them. Luffy, well… They were still rather cautious and wary around the straw-hatted kid, trying to keep the bouncy little enigma calm(ish) and feeling welcomed. Luffy didn't flinch nearly as much when sitting up by Whitebeard during one of the captain's stories and the boy more readily approached others lately. (Although, the latter really only applied to Whitebeard and a select group of the commanders and _only_ if one or both of the older two were in eye-shot.)

"I'm sure they're fine," Newgate answered, voicing his own hope with a touch more confidence than he felt.

Looking between his captain and fellow commanders, Haruta hesitantly asked, "So… Uh, does this mean they _won't_ be joining our ranks?" The Troublesome Trio _had_ opted to brave an epic storm in favor of ditching them, after all. That's a rather bold "F-off!" to Pops' offer in his mind.

Everyone went silent, contemplating the younger pirate's _very_ _legitimate_ query. Newgate still desired to make the three brothers part of his crew, especially the Fire-Fist Brat when he recalled the runt's "challenge".

The others (minus Haruta) had really started to invest themselves in getting to know the Trio; Namur maybe not quite as much as the original group, but he did resolve to give the brothers a chance. Strawhat is also interesting to the shark-like fishman and he still wants to know the fry better.

Haruta felt more neutral, though not exactly uncaring, towards the Trio's apparent leaving; more peeved that, for all his digging, he still knew nothing overtly important about them or their past.

"Let me see that," the pompadoured chef requested, reaching for the paper still held in Izou's hands. The Sixteenth raised a trim brow but said nothing as he obliged. "Maybe there's a clue about where they went."

Haruta huffed, "Ha, doubtful. Face it, Thatch. They left!" Scanning the page, turning it every-which-way, the Fourth shook his head.

"No, they promised."

Confused over the other's choice of words, and the certainty behind them, Namur asked, "What does them promising something have to do with this? People break promises all the time."

Pirates were particularly noted for not keeping their word. Except…hadn't he been hearing the odd complaint or two by one of those who usually visited with the missing Trio about that?

This time Vista, cottoning onto the chef's train of thought, answered firmly, "Not them. For some reason, promises hold great weight to Fire-Fist and his brothers. Even more so if _they_ are the ones to make them."

Understanding what the two were implying, Izou nodded. "We agreed to them eating regular meals provided by the idiot and, in exchange, would stop by…can't remember the name, but an island for them to stretch their legs."

Namur and Haruta frowned.

"But," the youngest present started, eyeing the kimono wearer, "if they agreed to stay with us, at least until we get to Monroes, why aren't they here?"

Going over their conversation at the time, Marco almost groaned. Seeing the look on his son's face, Newgate gestured for the commander to share.

"We left a massive loophole, yoi." Izou frowned. "What? What're you talking about, Birdy?"

"That agreement we made with them. Where they eat regular meals made by Thatch-yoi if they wanted to be allowed to run free on Monroes Island when we get there."

The fishman eyed his ship-brother. "Doesn't that mean," he drawled, "that the Trio broke their promise?"

Haruta nodded in agreement, clearly not understanding where Marco is going with this.

Thankfully, someone else—a _couple_ someones did.

A light went off in Vista and Whitebeard's heads.

Recalling the conversation his brother is referencing for himself, the Fifth Commander exclaimed, "I believe I understand what Marco is implying! Izou, Thatch, and Pops, you should know too." The captain grunted as the other two aforementioned pirates adopted contemplative faces. Slightly impatient, the swordsman explained, "We never told them they had _stay_ with us as we traveled to the island." Everyone's (bar Marco and Newgate) eyes widened at the realization—Haruta just looked a little lost.

"You're right," Izou said, pointer-finger tapping his chin thoughtfully.

Gazing at his family in confusion, the youngest commander piped up, "So?"

Thatch rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath, "And he leads one of the _intelligence_ -gathering divisions…" Haruta glared at the pompadour'd male, a small blush dusting his cheeks.

As the chef dodged the swipe from his smaller sibling, Izou said, "It's self-explanatory. The Trio agreed to one thing when we thought they agreed to another. We implied that they'd be promising to stick with us until we made landfall—"

"But never explicitly said it, creating the large loophole," Haruta finished.

"In our defense," the Fourth grimaced, "we didn't think they'd leave—or _could_ leave without anyone noticing. Especially during a storm, the suicidal idiots!" _'S'pose we're partially to blame on that, though. Their ex-first mate did warn us they could be sneaky little devils._ '

Looking between his assembled family, Namur asked Marco, "You think they planned that oversight?"

The phoenix nodded while Izou answered, "It would make sense with what little we know of them. Blondie probably planned on us making that mistake, seeing as he's dubbed the Trio's schemer and strategist by their old crew."

 _'What I would like to know is why they felt the oversight necessary and then took advantage of it during a typhoon._ ' Whitebeard worried most over that last part. The storm had been tiring for them on a big ship like the _Moby_ ; the brat Trio allegedly left with a rowboat. _'Why would they risk their safety like that?'_ The older pair is too protective of the runt for the reason to have been something minor…

"For now," the captain's voice boomed, "we'll make haste for Monroes Island." It's the closest landmass so there's little doubt that is where the Troublesome Trio was headed for when they jumped ship.

The commanders nodded at their father's order. Thatch, Namur, Haruta, Vista, and Izou split up to inform the crew to cancel the search and ready the ship. Marco left for the helm. He glanced out to sea, making a wide sweep of the rolling waves in the faint hope of spotting the wayward brothers.

Finding nothing, he ducked inside to tell those currently navigating of Pops' order.

* * *

That was two days ago. Now the _Moby Dick_ is approaching the final leg of its journey to their destination.

Vista and Izou idly watched their blue-eyed, blond brother slowly pacing the rail up by the ship's figurehead. Tensions were high, nerves strung tight, and the Phoenix-zoan's rigid expression and demeanor weren't helping. The look on the First's face had everyone (sans a few commanders and a certain captain) staying far away from the man. Hell, after the first bird-related joke passed Thatch's lips in Marco's presence got the chef chucked overboard (far enough that it took several minutes for their fastest swimmer, Namur, to haul him back), even _he_ was on his best behavior. Newgate tried calming/placating his son (plus the man's temper) on several occasions, and failed, before opting to sit back and let the other be.

The zoan is trying to keep himself in-check, keep himself from acting on the pent-up nerves and worry broiling in his stomach. The two observers can, however, tell the effort's chipping away at Marco's patience. They are all worried the ASL Trio didn't make it to the island, their stolen boat no match for the sea's might. With how the blond commander had acted around the missing Trio, a majority of the crew were surprised by Marco's attitude because they hadn't believed he'd been all that attached to them.

Interested, yes. That had been very obvious. But interest alone wouldn't have their brother in a tizzy while trying to maintain a calm stoicism. A façade that appeared strained at the edges from the blond's forced efforts.

A familiar, furry white mass ascended the stairs to the small foredeck. The Fifth and Sixteenth Commanders sweatdropped when the canine, bearing a similar aura to the sometimes-avian's, walked along behind the rail before stiffly sitting and staring out across the bow. Between the two moody individuals—not including a spastic chef currently stormily cooking for stress-relief—and their adopted father, _everyone_ couldn't wait the last few hours until the island came in sight.

Earlier, in an attempt to lighten the heavy mood, Haruta bettingly asked if Stefan would be going with to the island. Those selected to disembark paled at the prospect, none wanting to be in close-quarters with snappish beast. Those _not_ going ashore latched onto the idea and made bets of whether the dog would go or stay. Additional (teasing) bets were cast over who would be unlucky enough to get stuck riding the same boat as Stefan. Safe to say, the pirates chosen to head ashore were far from amused by their siblings' ribbing—many complaining and/or praying over the possibility of being jinxed.

"I'm thinking of changing my bet," Vista muttered. He at first believed Stefan would stay aboard but, looking at the dog now, he's starting to have second thoughts.

Gently snapping a small fan open and close, Izou remarked, "You think he'll go? Rather mean to wish that sort of misfortune upon family, isn't it?"

Vista smirked, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "You?"

"70 beri on Rakuyo." Izou didn't _really_ think the dog would leave Pops' side, his bet is more of the 'but if it does…' sort. Just in case, the Sixteenth didn't mind taking the chance of jinxing his fellow commander and any of the others who'd spouted that nonsense some days ago.

"Heard Bay's rooting for that too," the swordsman chuckled. "Almost feel sorry for those going."

The smaller male gave a toothy grin as he responded, "Stefan should be the least of their problems. The Trio have had time to stew."

Several of the crew were of the opinion the Trio didn't make it, although they took care to never voice that particular opinion within range of Pops. Others, such as Izou, Marco, Vista, Namur, and Thatch, wholeheartedly wished otherwise. Pops seemed of the same mind.

Why else would the giant man select almost all those who'd badmouthed the straw-hatted runt to go ashore and locate the Trio?

 **BREARBAEKRAEKBERKBE**

Rakuyo tapped his foot on the pebbly beach, impatiently waiting for the rest of the landing party to drag the boats onto shore. Marco was inspecting the beach's formerly sole occupant closer to the brushline: a boat.

In particular, a familiar rowboat with a simplified version of their insignia carved into a plank at its bow. Since the boat was even there at all, everyone could assume that either the trio of brothers _had_ made it safely or… Well, Marco isn't running about like a headless chicken—Rakuyo snickered behind a hand at the pun—so the man probably sensed them nearby.

Sick of waiting for his adopted siblings to finish hauling the boats higher onto the beach, the Seventh stomped over to go assist them. He's already in a bad mood, what with being selected to go scout for the missing Trio and having to deal with a _very_ moody battle-dog—thank whatever gods exist the beast had decided against coming in the end!

Stefan, growling a good portion of the time and snapping at anyone (mostly Rakuyo) that ticked him off, had stalked the orlop deck for an hour before the landing party departed the ship. The group of thirty pirates plus one of two accompanying commanders were jumpy enough with Marco's tense and frustrated demeanor. Even if he understood why, the zoan hadn't been thrilled at not being allowed to fly about the island. Adding in the threat of a moody Stefan riding one of the boats with them merely served to ramp up the heavy atmosphere.

Pops also said the Seventh couldn't bring his flail along. They weren't to make a scene and having Macey present would cause just that. Hearing this upped the number of moody commanders going ashore by one.

In short, it all translated to a grouchy Rakuyo. A grouchy Rakuyo who just wanted to get this search party over and done with. Find the three brats, apologize to the weird runt, avoid possibly getting roasted by the runt's attack dogs, then report back to his father (and hopefully succeed in stopping those looks of mild disappointment).

Rakuyo isn't especially fond of kids. They're intrusive, annoying, loud, sticky-fingered, snot-nosed cry-babies. They'd wail and get upset over anything and everything. Still…even he could admit that he _might've_ gone a bit far in calling the weird, growling shortstack a little monster. Just a little.

Marco straightened up next to the missing-now-found boat, figure tense and angled towards the scrub lining the beach. Catching the change, the other thirty-one pirates present stopped talking and looked between their brother and the trees.

Sidling up to the zoan, one hand lightly resting on the grip of his pistol and wary eyes roving the area, Rakuyo quietly asked, "Find something?"

"Thought I saw…" Marco trailed off, blue orbs intensely surveying the greenery ahead.

The First couldn't really pinpoint the presence fading in and out. It's near and he's sure he caught a glimpse of something running around. Marco can't confirm it yet because the wind is blowing in the wrong direction and he's only hearing snippets of movement.

 _'I don't like this, yoi._ '

Their fellow crewmen shuffle nervously behind them, hands inching for holstered/sheathed weapons as the tense atmosphere grows thicker and anticipation builds.

"Well, then," the Seventh huffs. Taking a step forward and puffing out his chest, Rakuyo hollered, "Oi! We know yer there so get yer a—"

"AAAH! I got found!"

The exclamation cut off the commander's shout as a large bush rustled before a thing— _a person_ shot out of it. Or, at least halfway out; their lower body, from the hips down, was still in the bush though they appeared to be about as tall as Marco. What the pirates _could_ see made a few groan.

White cap pulled low and shadowing most of the face, the word "Marine" emblazoned across the front. Long-sleeved white coat with tasseled shoulder pads and yellow trim. A buttoned up white suit with a blue ascot tied under the collar.

A ranked Marine. At least an Ensign.

"Wait! I know you," the man, now identified as a Marine, yelled while thrusting out a hand to point at the assembled pirates. Deep voice growing louder, the officer accusingly cried, "You're the Wheat Bread Pirates!"

"IT'S ' _WHITEBEARD'_ ," the pirates (sans First Commander) corrected angrily. Marco thought he saw a small smirk form on the dark-haired Marine's face but it was gone before he could tell for sure.

"That's what I said, stupid Wheat Beads!" Unslinging the rifle from his back, the Marine continued with a shout of, "And I, Lieutenant Commander Red, will defeat you swivelly-eyed barnacle-heads!" Everyone stared at 'Red'.

 _'Why does this idiot seem familiar, yoi?'_

Brow slowly arching at the sight before him, Marco pointedly looked at the gun in the Marine's hands. Raising his voice over the disgruntled mutterings of his sibling, the blond stated, "That's not how you hold it, yoi."

The Marine, Red, held the weapon like it was an over-sized club. Both hands were fastened around the gun's muzzle with its wood stock raised in the air over the dark-haired male's shoulder. He looked ready to swing it like a bat at any second.

"No bullets," Red blandly replied, slightly shifting his grip on the rifle's barrel.

The Whitebeards sweatdropped at the answer. Tempers rose at the thought of some moron of a Marine officer believing they could take on the famous Whitebeard Pirates.

 _'Without ammo it really is nothing but a fancy club_ ,' Rakuyo concurred. Glaring at the offensive idiot, he sneered, "So yer gonna 'defeat' us, by yerself, using a fancy club?"

"Psht! No, stupid Goldilocks," the Seventh spluttered at the insulting nickname, "I'm gonna do this!"

The exaggerated sound of a person sucking in a huge lungful of oxygen reached the group's ears. Marco's eyes widened and his hands rushed to cover his sensitive ears when the tall Lieutenant Commander raised his head a little higher. The shadow of his hat's bill still covered his eyes but everyone on the beach could see the shit-eating grin on the man's face. A second later, a blaring cry rends the air.

Opening his mouth wide, Red bellowed, "THE WHEAT BREAD WHITE BEAD PIRATES ARE HERE!"

A collective wince spread through the assembled pirates, the phoenix's more a pained grimace as the noise assaulted his hearing. Only Rakuyo and a few others were lucky enough to avoid most of the damage to their hearing, having seen and copied Marco's action; their ears were still left ringing, however. The Marine's voice rang again when the Whitebeards were about to pull their hands away from their heads.

"THE BREAD BEARD PIRATES ARE COMING!"

Several pirates growled at the mangling of their family/crew's name, the Seventh Commander among them.

Tired of the blatant disrespect (and the ringing in his ears) Rakuyo growled and aimed his pistol at the damn loudmouth. Marco quickly grabbed the raised wrist and forcefully lowered the weapon. A couple other crewmates latched onto the irate commander to keep him from going anywhere.

"Pops said we weren't to make a scene, yoi," he hissed. The Marine started calling out more mangled versions of their crew's moniker, riling the pirates further.

Rakuyo jabbed a finger at the bloody annoying idiot—who's now blowing raspberries at them! "He started it! And the entire bloody damn island's prob'ly heard his hollerin'!" What point was there in not being loud and making a commotion with this retard's having already done so?

Mutterings of agreement bubbled behind them. Rakuyo glared at the older blond as both (unsuccessfully) tuned out Red's taunts.

Sighing, the First said, "Going after the guy guns blazing isn't—"

"Ne, Crusty Bread Pirates!"

Swearing vehemently, the Seventh Commander turned to face the obnoxious Marine officer while opening his mouth to shout "what."

He didn't even get the first syllable out.

Marco and the rest of the landing party had also shifted their attention back to Red at that moment. Just in time, too, because the zoan managed to duck out of the way of a flying rifle. The others in the projectile's path also scattered—except for poor Rakuyo. Between recognizing there was something coming at him and those restraining him letting go to dive off to the side, the commander was left with almost no window to react.

He _tried_ ducking below the flying, spinning gun but its barrel still connected with his forehead. Marco and the rest winced for a whole new reason as Rakuyo, stunned, fell to the ground on his back. Luckily he managed to use Armament Haki to protect his skull from the worst of the damage.

"Is Goldilocks dead? I didn't throw _that_ hard! Booo! White Bread Pirates are weak! Booo!"

 _'Goddamned punk-ass bastard! That. Is. IT!'_

He's dealt with Pops' looks of mild disappointment. Dealt with a moody, overgrown bird. A blubbering chef that partially blamed him for the brats' vanishing. A snarky Izou, unhappy Vista, and grouchy Namur. Almost had a couple heart attacks when a giant, moody canine kept making passes as if it were going to select _his_ chosen boat to ride in. Then, he meets this bloody damn moron of Marine trash.

Rakuyo has _so_ beyond had it!

Later, those who'd stood nearest the downed pirate would swear they heard the exact second the man's thready control of his temper snapped.

Issuing a mighty roar, those gathered at the beach watched as Rakuyo swiftly rose like the dead reborn. One, however, took the comparison a little more literally.

"Gaaah! Goldilocks is a zombie!"

Marco only blinked as a rock, obviously thrown by Red, smacked his adopted sibling in the head. Coincidentally (or perhaps not) in the same place as the rifle a minute previous and knocking the division commander back down. Most likely more out of surprise than anything, but it still had to hurt on some level given the thin trail of blood coming from the wound. And, thanks to getting whacked by the rifle, the surrounding pirates figured Rakuyo also probably had a mild concussion by now.

Striking a dramatic pose of triumph, the Marine crowed, "Bahaha! I, Lieutenant Commander Red, have defeated the weak zombie Sandwich Bread Pirate!"

Yes, Marco now has a _very_ good idea about who this 'Red' really is. _'Doesn't explain why I still can barely sense him even though I'm looking right at him, yoi._ ' Glancing down at his fellow blond, the zoan promptly notes the gathering thunder clouds in the other's expression. "Oi, don't—"

"YOU'RE _DEAD_ ," Rakuyo exclaimed, voice filled with outrage at the abuse he's suffered because of this Marine scum.

"GAAAAH! THE PIRATES ARE ZOMBIES!" Flailing his hands around in the air, the officer spins around and takes off into the forest, shrieking up a storm of "zombie" and "Wheat Beard" related content as he goes.

Not wanting the bastard to get away, a gun-waving Rakuyo lunges after. "C'mon men, let's teach the shitty bastard a lesson!"

With shouts of bloodthirsty assent, the rest of the Whitebeards are hot on their brother's heels as they race after the insulting Marine. The Phoenix-zoan, retaining his wits unlike his fellows, resists the urge to sigh at the rapid change of events. He knows without a doubt that the 'Marine' is in fact Luffy; if not the name-calling then the tiny "shishishi" he'd barely heard when the rock had struck Rakuyo confirmed it.

 _'But how did he…oh._ ' A rock.

There's a rock hidden in the bush the brat used to make him seem taller.

Inspecting the bush brings something else to the First Commander's attention: mint. Instead of Strawhat's odd scent, Marco's nose is hit with an intense wave of mint. The strength of it has him sneezing a couple times and backing away to breathe clearer air.

Wondering if the kid somehow fell into a vat of the substance, Marco scans the area and finds Luffy's presence to be more noticeable. But, aside from his fellows who are avidly chasing the runt, the only others he can sense are the dull presences of the townsfolk (and likely real Marines).

So where are Strawhat's brothers?

* * *

"Okay, guys! I want a couple on 'trumpet' duty, the smaller ones selecting a 'ride' and you bigger ones handing out the weapons," Sabo called out with a cheery smile. Yells, booms, small rumbles, the creaking of trees, and the occasional gunshot could be heard in the background.

/I can't believe you gave Lu a gun…/

Another boom sounded from the forest outside of the small village. Loud, garbled howls—Sabo would bet his left arm they're actually obscenities being directed at his baby brother for leading the pursuers into yet another of the various traps—followed immediately after.

Rolling his eyes, the blond responded /It's just a prop! There's no bullets so what's the worst he could do with it?/

(Sabo pretended to not notice the older's raised eyebrow and face, expression silently asking 'Really? You wanna go there?')

Honestly, it's a simple enough job and one Luffy excels at without usually meaning to anyway.

Attract the landing party's attention while posing as a Marine. Get them to chase him into the woods. Lead the idiot Whitebeards through the minefield of traps they'd built. And then, when Sabo or Ace tells him to, bring the pirates to the edge of town.

Simple.

 **/( _Curious_ ) Mango really didn't follow. That fine?/**

/( _Disappointment_ ) Guess hoping Pineapple-Head would fall for it was too much to ask, huh?/

Aiding in positioning some of their younger help, Sabo shot an exasperated look at his older brother across the street.

/( _Mirthconfusion_ ) What? It'd be hilarious, admit it!/

Well…yeah, Sabo had to agree it _would_ be funny if Marco had gotten caught in one of their traps.

 **/( _Curious Forgot_ ) _Atce, Sávbó_ , did we put anything in upper forest?/**

The older pair of siblings glanced at each other before Ace answered /Why?/

Seeing one of their little 'soldiers' about to choose an improper weapon (for them), Sabo rushed over to switch it with a less dangerous one. He and Ace only got the adults to agree to this deal on the promise that none of those participating (aside from the Marines and pirates) would be hurt.

 **/ Some broke off. Think they're trying to corner me./**

Taking a moment to contemplate the layout of the booby-trapped area, Sabo replied /…Didn't we put some mini-canons that way?/

Boom!

Boom! Boom!

…BOOOOM!

The blast volume of that last explosion had several heads turning to see a big plume of orange and blue rising over the treetops.

/ _Lú_ , what did we say about touching things that go 'boom'?/ Ace asked with a flat tone.

 **/( _me?confusionWhat?false_ ) Who says that was my fault? ( _falsefalsenottrue_ ) Not like I added more nasty-smelling boom-powder to one or put more ammo in it! Nope!/** Both older siblings tossed a scowl in the direction they sensed their youngest.

/( _Exasperation_ ) How many times have we said you're a shitty liar, Light? _Especially_ when thought-speaking! / Sabo scolded. Across the way, the blond caught Ace pretending to cough as a cover for his bout of chuckles.

/( _InterestCurious Funny_ ) Hahaha! I can't _wait_ to see the results of Lu's tampering! /

Sabo restrained the urge to face-palm and groan at his brothers—it would look a little weird if he did so right now. /Children. You're both…little… _children_ , I swear!/

Bastards had the nerve to laugh at hearing that.

* * *

At first, the explosions and cries of his shipmates alarm Marco. Badly.

It's only Luffy's chiming laughter that calms him as he flies over the woods—Pops' order of maintaining a low profile is officially nixed at this point so there's no reason he can't—because Marco doesn't believe the brat to have a cruel bone in his body. Not that the commander knows the kid _that_ well…yet. It's simply that Luffy doesn't seem the type to hurt others and laugh this cheerfully over it.

The number of traps laced throughout the woods also hints to being the handiwork of a certain pair of overprotective brothers. Izou mentioned Sabo and Ace were unlikely to take the previous mistreatment of their little brother lying down and the landing party should expect _some_ form of retaliation. He'd agreed but hadn't thought said retaliation would be quite this…extensive.

Twenty minutes have passed and there are _still_ traps and such being activated left and right as Luffy leads the Whitebeards on a wild goose chase. (Which begs the question of why they're even continuing to chase the brat. Marco suspects a few screws may've been knocked loose—or loos _er_ —by some of the traps—for the division members, at least. He blames Rakuyo's temper for the man's persistence and tunnel-vision.)

When the Phoenix senses Strawhat suddenly breaking away from his pursuers and heading in the direction of the island's small town, he beats his wings and follows.

He arrives, a little ahead of Luffy, to the sight of buildings in the midst of repairs. Curiously, what appears to be a good portion of the island's population (both civilian and Marine) are gathered at the village's western edge and facing the woods. Some are standing around, chatting and drinking and others are sitting in chairs (chatting and drinking). No one stood beyond the threshold of the last set of buildings bordering the empty field resting between wood and village—probably for growing various crops and tending livestock. Another space devoid of people is the chest-high and obviously hastily built platform with thick pine branches covering the front and sides. A closer examination of a couple buildings—storage sheds?—behind and to the side of the platform/stage reveals not a soul to be sitting directly in front of the doors to them.

Despite the oddities of the scene, all the villagers and Marines have smiling faces or looks of eagerness, as if they're waiting for a show.

Oddly, Marco can't spot any children. A small village Monroes Island may host, but there should still be children running about.

Aware of the many gazes and pointing fingers, Marco swoops down to perch on the roof of a building at the very edge of the village. It's a convenient roost that places him off to the side and at the far corner of the field, but provides an unobstructed view of the area the townsfolk are watching. There's people seated directly below the eaves of his chosen perch, among which are a couple Marines—good for listening in on what the heck is going on.

Marco's presence was soon ignored once a white-clad—or what used to be white; there's a lot of brown, red, blue and splotches of other colors staining the fabric now—"Red" came barreling out of the woods.

* * *

Streaking across the field, Luffy didn't spare more than the barest of glances at the fiery blue bird settled atop one of the houses. Ace and Sabo came up with a plan to stop the Commander, if he chose to intervene, while Lu was getting chased around.

Bare feet dug into the soil as the dragon leapt for the stage, being careful not to land with too much force and send the thing crashing down; that would be bad for more than a couple reasons. No sooner did his feet touch the worn boards than Luffy began, literally, ripping his disguise off. He'd already ditched the hat, necktie and shoes (not that he remembers when exactly that happened), so all that remained were the long (annoying) pants, messy (irritating) shirt, and oversized coat.

Ace and Sabo walk out from behind a nearby building, the former holding a length of white fabric and the latter a torch's pole and a familiar hat. Meeting their youngest sibling on the stage, Sabo felt thankful they'd been able to convince the dragon to put on a pair of boxers. True, they were Ace's so they looked more like shorts on Lu's smaller frame, but at least he's not flashing anybody because of them. Still…

"Oi, Red, we've _told_ you not to strip in public. What if some creep is watching or something?" Ace says as he hands over the modified officer's coat for the smaller to wear. (The coat belongs to Toad Face and each of them has taken the liberty of stealing and slightly modifying one for themselves. They've crossed out the word 'justice' on the backs, instead writing 'BOSS' in either red, blue or yellow paint in big letters. Because his chosen color is relatively light, Ace had to go back and outline the letters in thick black sharpie.)

Luffy, taking the proffered garment, casts a quick look at his sole piece of clothing before giving Ace a look of confusion. "But I have shorts on so I'm not naked."

Ace face-palms and grumbles about "naïve idiot baby brothers."

* * *

Marco quietly snorts in amusement at the older raven's reaction (the Trio aren't being quiet and he's close enough to hear them fairly well).

* * *

Sensing the Whitebeards, aside from a certain zoan, are still a minute or so out, Sabo addresses something else of (mild) concern.

"Where's the rifle, Red?" Coat draped like a cape across his shoulders, the dragon takes the staff (torch pole) and his treasured headwear from the blond.

"The whack-'em-stick? Eh, tossed it before running," he shrugs.

/( _Confusion What?_ ) You…tossed it?/ Ace slowly repeats. The freckled teen can already guess where this is going by the ridiculous name his brother gave the unloaded weapon. (He doesn't look into whether it's sad or not that he likely knows the reason _behind_ the 'why' of said name; it's bad enough that Ace would probably dub it the same.)

With a bright smile, Luffy nods.

/To be clear, when you say 'tossed' you mean 'threw'./

Again, the fourteen-year-old nodded, this time to his blond sibling.

 **/( _Curious_ ) What else was I supposed to do with it? ( _Certainty_ ) Just a whacking-stick with no bullets./**

Snickering, Ace privately asked Sabo /( _Amused_ ) How much ya wanna bet he threw it at someone?/

The younger's response is a blank look and a deadpanned /I don't take sucker-bets./

* * *

Marco hears curses and stomping footfalls coming from the woods. He almost gapes at the untidy—a polite understatement—appearance of his shipmates as they stumble into the open with murderous expressions. All look as if they've gone a few rounds with Atmos then decided to take a few of Thatch's more elaborate prank setups head-on. Mud covers their bodies almost as liberally as the patches and swathes of blue, orange, yellow and red paint. Ten of them were nearly completely covered in a solid color, looking to have taken a swim in either yellow or blue paint; or, in the case of two individuals, as if the colors orange and blue had gone to war. (Most likely those two are the unfortunates who set off that one large explosion to the north.)

Aside from the mud and paint, what little can be made out of the Whitebeards' clothing shows the pirates have had a rough time of things. Rips and tears litter the garments, some missing half a sleeve or pant leg. Several are lacking either one or both shoes; not surprising considering a majority of the landing party chose to wear some form of sandal. Leaves and twigs (and feathers?) were also caught in the men's hair and tattered clothes, giving the mass of pirates the image of being disgruntled wild men.

 _'What does Rakuyo-yoi have stuck to his head?'_ It was a round thing that had feathers jutting out from the base. Said object's base seemed to somehow be firmly attached to the Seventh Commander's forehead, making the man look like he was sporting a weird horn of sorts. And it was 'firmly attached' because the Phoenix is watching the scowling blond pull at the thing, his efforts making him stagger as he walks, and it's not budging...

* * *

Luffy's sudden peals of laughter caused the angry pirates to stumble to a stop, finally taking in that they were the center of attention.

"Gahahaha shishishi! It looks like they fought a chicken and lost! Shishishishi!"

Sabo and Ace's sniggering had nothing on the belting guffaws emanating from the gathered villagers and Marines.

"Okay, okay. Time to get this show on the road," Sabo spoke up. Marco watched a couple people (a villager and Marine) get up from their seats and head over to behind the supposed storage buildings. Strutting to the edge of the platform, the blond called out, "Too long have we been oppressed by the barbaric Rainbow Bandits! It's high time we take a stand! Take back our freedom!"

The Phoenix nearly fell from his perch at the words. _'The hell is he talking about yoi!?'_

While the Whitebeards were left dumbfounded—and very lost—Marco noted the villagers and Marines looked unperturbed. Some were sending concerned glances to the stage and/or sheds but for the most part remained relaxed. The rest of the people were eagerly eyeing the Trio, the First Commander, and the group of pirates as they murmured excitedly to one another.

The pirates watched, utterly confused, as the two adults came back pulling a small, covered cart each. After placing one on either side of the platform, the pair went back to their spots (the Marine picking up a tankard and grinning unnervingly at the assembled pirates).

Stepping up next to his blond sibling, Luffy thrust a fist into the air and shouted, "Sound the trumpets!"

The carts' covers were thrown off, revealing two smiling and very excited kids. From his roost, the First Commander saw both carts also held a pile of little ball-like things. Raising a rolled-up newspaper to their lips, the kids made a loud (out of sync) trumpet call.

"Brrrrbrrbrrbrrrrr! Brbrrrbrbrbrrrrr!"

Apparently that was the signal for the branch-covered front of the raised platform to fall down. From underneath the stage a crowing gaggle of kids (looking to be around ten years in age) streamed out to form twin lines facing the enemy "Rainbow Bandits." Each child was brandishing either a stick or rolled newspaper as a makeshift weapon. Marco, still floundering in the weird spectacle this was rapidly turning into, was mollified seeing only the older youngsters carried sticks.

A minute passed before the kids settled down and went (reasonably) quiet, holding their weapons at the ready.

Taking his cue, Ace swaggered to the platform's front. Cockily smirking at the ragtag group of Whitebeards, white coat-cape billowing in the wind, he flicked the edge of his orange hat up then planted both fists on his hips.

"Minion Platoon, front and center," he shouted. Upon hearing this, the Marines present immediately started snickering. Marco is curious (and bemused) over their lackadaisical demeanor with everything and _why they're even present_.

The storage sheds open as roughly twenty Marines swiftly march out. With the practiced in-sync step and features conveying stern seriousness, they would've portrayed an intimidating sight.

Keyword: _would've_.

That image is destroyed by the giant black letters and number scrawled across the front and back of the Marines' uniform shirts. Apparently, the Trio managed to convince the local Marines to go by the name "Minion" for this gag with only numbers to tell them apart.

Three of these officers, Minions 3, 7 and 16, carried giggling six-year-olds on their shoulders who were outfitted with paper weapons like their slightly older fellows. Rather than swords or guns (or some other lethal armament), every single Marine bore a stick; those carrying children had cloth rolled around the ends.

The new arrivals split into three groups as they drew near the stage. The groups of seven formed ranks to the left and right of the standing children and the third positioned themselves at the head of the pack, between the kids and (stunned silent) pirates.

Then, turning to face the Trio, the Marines stood at attention and formally saluted Ace, Sabo and Luffy. Again, the seriousness being shown was ruined when the three gigglers being carried by the officers made a cute attempt of copying the action.

"Soldiers," Ace spoke, voice deep with feigned solemnity. The children shuffling in place straightened their backs at the call, twisting around to view their 'leader.' "Selected for your bravery and strength, you are the best of best this place has to offer! Will you fight the evil Rainbow Bandits and reclaim this town?"

Wide grins splitting their little faces, the 'soldiers' waved their tiny fists in the air while they wildly crowed, "Yes, sir!"

Sabo waved for them to quiet then addressed those riding the so-called 'minions.' "Riders, you're to keep any of the evil bandits from escaping and directing support for your fellow men. Minions—"

One of the 'minion riders', a little girl with dark hair in pigtails, raised her hand.

"Yes?"

"Ummm…my minion sounds weird."

* * *

Luffy examined the Marine holding onto one of the girl's legs to keep her steady.

"Minion 7's special. Just ignore him," the dragon answered dismissively.

 _'More like an idiot_ ,' Ace and Sabo snorted.

* * *

Forging on, the blond resumed, "Minions! You are to protect these gallant soldiers with your lives! They are not to come to any harm, understood?" Varied reactions occurred to the response this command received.

The non-minion Marines fell to the ground, some pounding it with a fist and others clutching their stomach, as they lost control of their mirth.

The ragged Whitebeards standing on the opposite side of the small field felt their jaws drop, completely baffled at what they were hearing (and seeing).

* * *

Luffy laughed, picturing question marks and little dots floating above their heads; sending the mental image to his brothers quickly reduced them to holding their sides and loudly chortling.

* * *

Marco came close to face-planting (beak-planting?) into the roof and falling off, though he managed to avoid both at the last second. His squawk of bewildered shock and the short stint of wing-flailing had the villagers who saw him laughing even harder.

Why the mirth and shock?

Because, rather than the expected boom of "yes, sir" as they saluted, which would be in keeping with the minion-Marines' formal treatment of the Trio thus far, the officers had…gobbled. Actually, straight-up, no shit _gobbled_! Like they thought they were _turkeys_ instead of _people_ —except Minion 7; Minion 7 buckawed like a damn chicken.

And they looked absolutely _dead-fucking-serious doing it_ , too!

The kids were laughing hysterically, some of those standing dropping to their knees and struggling to breathe through their laughter. Those being carried by the minion-Marines were giving their "protectors" a difficult time between the men trying to keep the kids from falling off and getting whacked by the laughing tykes' improvised weapons. It didn't help anything that every time a minion was smacked by their rider they made a pained gobble—or a cluck in 7's case.

* * *

Ace, Sabo, and Luffy were damn proud of the orderly chaos they were leading. Who knew the idiot Marines from Toad Face's original forces would fall for the same trick (by the _same_ _people_ )?

Luffy had only wanted to go with Plan-B-that's-sorta-Plan-A because it involved less work than Plan-A-that's-more-of-Plan-B. Ace wanted to go with it because he sort of believed that, yes, those particular Marines _are_ just that stupid. That and, so long as it's not used against _him_ , Ace (and Luffy) think their blond sibling's skill/ability is extremely cool. Why pass up a chance of seeing it in action?

"Alright, soliders!" Sabo and Ace sighed at their little brother's mistake.

"It's 'soldiers', Red," the blond muttered. Luffy shrugged.

His shout had cut the laughing down and garnered the crowd's focus so what did it matter?

Plowing forward, the dragon said, "Remember, take down their boss and you win the battle!"

* * *

Luffy pointed into the crowd of (so-beyond-lost-it's-not-even-funny) Whitebeards watching them with blank faces. "Boss Bandit's feather-horn is also worth twenty points!"

Rakuyo felt dread creep up his spine with those words. He doesn't like kids but he certainly wouldn't ever _hurt_ _them_! But the hungry way those little brats were eyeing the pirate—eerily like a coveted piece of candy!—did not bode well for him. He can't attack the little buggers. Defending himself could potentially hurt them, too. Shit. He made a desperate try at removing the damnable feather-thing from his temple and…nope! It's not moving. Double-shit!

* * *

"Um, Red? Why's the 'horn' on his _head_?" Ace kind of wanted to know, though simultaneously had a fair idea of the answer. Sabo almost felt pity for the guy because _Luffy_ had gotten into the glue and mixed together the stuff used to stick it to the commander—but only 'almost'; the bastard _is_ one of those who'd said mean things about their little dragon.

"Eh. Missed his butt," is the nonchalant answer. Several sweatdropped hearing that.

* * *

 _'How do you hit someone's head when aiming for their opposite end, yoi?'_ Glancing between the smaller raven and the Seventh Commander, a different question struck Marco. _'Actually, how did Strawhat even_ hit _Rakuyo?!'_

Head shifting between both, his eyes caught sight of something trailing the edges of the field. _'Is that…?'_

* * *

Back down with the Troublesome Trio, one of the little soldiers raised their hand. The three brothers motioned for the child—a little boy with sandy hair—to speak.

"Uh, what're the points for?" A giant, toothy grin stretched across the dragon's face, forcing his eyes closed.

"Nothing!" The children just stared bemusedly up at their 'boss'.

* * *

Rakuyo released a sigh of relief. If the points weren't worth anything then he could run and not worry about the little brats coming after child asked, "Then why…?"

"Bragging rights! At the end, whoever has the most points would obviously be the strongest warrior, right? Boss Bandit's horn is twenty points and if you defeat him you win the battle!"

 _'Bloody hell, feed me to a damn Sea King!'_ At least he could fight one of those! _'Can run faster than the brats though…_ ' Maybe there's still a way out of this for him.

* * *

"Right, Minion 2 and Minion 11 to your post," Sabo ordered. Said Marines snapped a smart salute before gobbling in confirmation and ruining the effect. They broke off from the groups of seven to stand next to the carts.

Gazing at the 'evil bandits' with an excited, dark smirk and flames flickering on his shoulders, Ace bellowed, "Soldiers! The hour has come to defend your home from the greatest evil it's ever known! Are! You! _Ready_!?"

Cue weapon waving, excited stomping and jumping and impatient hollers of "Yeah" and "Sir, yes, sir". The Whitebeards would think the display of eagerness cute…if they weren't so creeped out by the determined looks those same tiny children possessed.

"Then let's show these mean Rainbow Bandits who's boss!" Throwing his hand out and pointing, Ace commanded, "Minion Riders, go!"

Sabo waited a beat before shouting, "Join them, soldiers!"

* * *

A screaming mob of kids plus angrily gobbling (or clucking) Marines. Sticks and rolled-up newspaper being brandished as weapons. Young eyes glaring and filled with bloodthirsty determination.

All directed at them…

The Whitebeard Pirates, at this point, could agree that this is _easily_ one of the top ten weirdest, most bizarre, and by far confusing scenarios they have _ever_ found themselves in.

Facing this howling mass of chaos, the pirates decided the best option was to run. Then they can try regrouping with Marco and find out just _what in the seven hells_ is going on around here!

Twisting around to make a break for the "safety" of the woods—the thought of facing those annoying-ass traps is preferable to whatever they'd face against these little monsters. They only made it two steps before that avenue got blocked off.

By a wall of fire.

* * *

Marco observed that Ace and Sabo looked like cats who caught a fat canary when the dismayed expletives echoed across the field.

* * *

Gazes shifting between the crazy-eyed ankle-biters bearing down on them and the fire preventing escape, one of the division members caught a glimpse of the feathers attached to Rakuyo's head. _'Oh!'_

"Hey, they're after the Commander, right?"

"So?"

Rakuyo started sweating as more speculative eyes fixed on him. _'These bastards better not_ —'

"Wait, he's right! The brats are only after him, so we don't have to deal with," the man weakly gestured at the loud wave of bodies coming at them, " _that_ if we just let them at 'im!"

The group traded looks between each other and the Seventh Commander. Another swift glance at the screaming kids had them scrambling away from their division-leading brother like their lives depended on it—which might be the case with how those children are acting. Several of the pirates would swear the little buggers' eyes to be glowing an ominous red!

Rakuyo froze for a moment at the blatant betrayal of his brothers.

 _'Damn bunch of spineless, backstabbing lumps o' shit!'_ He hollers as much to his brethren, minus the swear words. ('Cause Bay would _skin him alive_ if she found out he'd cussed in front of "innocent children". He severely doubts anyone with him would describe these particular little buggers as "innocent" but it's not worth the verbal hide-lashing such a debate would earn him.)

Unfortunately, Rakuyo's forced to break off the chewing-out of his fellows upon realizing he's a sitting duck to a raving-mad pack of children. Who are now officially less than ten feet from him.

A sense of impending doom settles on his shoulders.

 _'Shit!'_

* * *

Marco and the rest of the Whitebeard Pirates watch as the Seventh Commander takes off like a desperate, drunk bat out of hell—what with the swerves and twists to avoid the swinging weapons of child and Marine—and howling bloody murder.

The rest of the landing party sigh, feeling as if they've dodged a bullet while watching their brother flee from the mob of kids. Then the Phoenix catches Luffy pouting as the straw-hatted teen alternates looking at the kids (plus Marines) chasing Rakuyo and the unmolested group of pirates.

Strawhat smiles right before proclaiming, "Bandits are ten points each if you take them down!"

 _'So glad I can fly, yoi,_ ' Marco winces.

* * *

The rest of the pirates don expressions of disbelief and horror. The latter increases exponentially when all but three kids (one of which is riding a Marine) stop yelling and running to stare at Strawhat Brat for a couple seconds.

Ice pricks the Whitebeards' spines when those same pairs of eyes turn on them with a calculating look, probably running the math through their little heads.

Several of the pirates begin taking slow, cautious steps away from the spookily contemplative children. They _know_ how the math will work out—ten points times twenty-eight pirates versus one pirate worth thirty, _not much of a choice_ if you're trying to get as many points as you can!—and these brats (who're more like little demons at the moment) are _way too serious about this_!

Sharing a last look between them, the insane kids sprint towards their new group of targets while screaming like they're going to war. The minion-Marines under the command of the two brats dubbed as 'riders' flank the tide of mini-warriors, waving their sticks menacingly and barking like murderous turkeys. (Guess the clucker's the one chasing their Seventh Commander then.)

If they didn't feel so out of their depth, and long past wondering what the ever-living- _fuck_ is happening, the Whitebeard Pirates might've found this whole thing amusing.

As it is, the clamoring demon-child horde has the no-longer-being-ignored-pirates spinning around and screaming in terror as they make a panic-stricken dash away from their pursuers. Curses flew left and right, either under their breath so the brats hounding them couldn't hear or at the top of their lungs while censoring themselves.

Things only got worse when they heard one of the (Evil) Brat Trio call out for something like "shooters" to enter the fray. That's when the two kids in carts, which were being pulled by the Marines, started lobbing paint-filled balls at the pirates.

By now, all the spastically-fleeing Whitebeards were thinking the same thing: "Screw apologizing!"

They were going to murder the Evil Trio once this…this—whatever this asinine situation _is_ —is done!

* * *

"Purupuru…purupuru…"

Newgate and the rest of his commanders were seated in the Communications Room waiting to speak with the landing party. They've had enough time to land, scope things out, and report back. That his sons haven't is…worrisome.

"Purupuru…purupuru…"

Thatch, arm braced against the table and hand propping up his chin, stared at the ringing snail. Just as concerned as the chef, Vista kept glancing from the snail to the growing furrow of his father's brow. Izou and Haruta glared at the creature, the former tapping a fan against his shoulder in his impatience. The rest of the commanders were either leaned against a wall or shuffling in place. Namur had been more off to the side in the beginning, but as the den den mushi kept going unanswered he'd slowly moved forward to stand behind Vista.

"Purupuru…purup—"

Excitement and relief swamped the gathered pirates as the snail stopped its ringing and its bulbous eyes twitched. The positivity lasted for the miniscule time it took the transponder snail's eyes to snap wide-open as it began wailing in mindless, panicked confusion.

" _GAAAAH! —VRYWHERE! THEY're everywhere! BakbaakbakBUKAAAH! OWOWOW! —body help me! GobblegobbleGWOBBLE! —can't hurt them— Bandit getting away! AAAAH! Stay back! Minion three—EEeeviiiilll! —urrounded! TRAITOR, DON'T LEAV—MEANIE RAainbow! Ow, get off! —aakbakbaak! BUKAAAWK! RUNAWAAAaaaay!"_

To say the initial cacophonous blast of sound caught the room's occupants entirely off-guard would be an understatement.

Shoving himself upright and away from the snail with a hissed curse, Thatch accidentally overbalanced and, arms windmilling uselessly, fell to the ground.

During his descent, one of his feet kicked the side of Haruta's seat. Already caught up in his own blatant shock, the stiff Twelfth Commander shouted in alarm and tried jumping away from whatever tried to "attack" him. Haruta gave another cry as his own traitorous feet caught on the chair's legs and sent him stumbling into Izou.

The kimono-wearer, hearing the loud scream of one of his siblings on the den den mushi, had jumped at the sound and accidentally sent his fan flying. The younger commander bumping into Izou sent both into the side of Vista, who'd been in the process of trying to keep himself upright through the stunned shock filling him.

 _That_ effort met an abrupt end when the feeling of something knocking into him caused the larger pirate to have another start and jump while grabbing whatever hit him. It ultimately ended with all three sprawled out on the ground in a pile, faces the picture of dazed confusion.

Namur only avoided the mess, or at least _that_ specific one, by shuffling backwards and away from the snail assaulting his ears with the loud sounds. With hands busy trying to protect said ears, the fishman reflexively flung one out when he tripped over Fossa—the Fifteenth having fallen onto his butt at the snail's screaming—and accidentally smacked Curiel in the stomach. The abrupt weight caused the now-winded Tenth, who'd been hastily fixing his noise-cancelling headphones over his ears, to let out a startled, soundless squawk as he joined his brothers on the floor.

Whitebeard and the other six commanders merely jolted harshly in place at the burst of noise, though their father's chair _had_ given an ominous creak at the giant's movement.

They all stared, eyes almost wider than the transponder snail's, as the multitude of voices continued to issue from the little creature. Several absently thought that if it had little arms they'd be waving around in the air spastically right now.

 _"—obblegOBBle! Blasted Marines, STOP PECKing meeee! WAAAAAH! GOBBLEGOB—RAINBOW TRASH! Little bugger—BAAAKBAKBAKBAKBUKAAAH! REEEETReeaaat! —N'T USE ME AS A SHIELD! —POINTS ARE MINE! AAAAH! —otta 'scape, goTTA ESCAPE! BANDIT BOSS COR— Gwaaaaah! —kuyo's down! GOBBLEGOBBLEGOBBLE! —oomed! We're doOOOMED-ACK! TAKE THATANDTHatandthatan— AHAHAHA! POINTS TO MEEEEeeeee! BAKBAKBAKBAAAAK! —eeeEAAASE SPAAAARE MEee—"_

Clank _._ "

Slowly, stunned eyes tracked the arm up to a wincing Blamenco.

"I couldn't take any more o' that," he offers, shooting the snail a perplexed, and somewhat frightened, look.

"Chickens 'n turkeys. There were chickens and turkeys…attackin'?" Thatch jerked his head around to stare at a mumbling Fossa.

" _That's_ what you got outta all that!? Kids! I heard little kids, did anyone else hear little kids? I heard little, scary kids."

Blenheim blankly eyed the sleeping snail. Shaking himself, the Ninth offered in a baritone voice, "There was something 'bout Marines and… _minions_. The heck's a 'minion'?"

Rolling Haruta off him, Izou stood while saying, "Kids were shouting something about rainbows, bandits, and points."

Picking himself up, shooting a glare at the crossdresser for the rough treatment, the Twelfth Commander asked, "Was Rakuyo running from a _chicken_?"

Every time the chicken came through they could hear a panicking Rakuyo wailing immediately afterwards.

"Anyone else pick up the vibe that it was sorta 'every man for himself'?"

Dazed nods met Kingdew's question.

"Chickens 'n turkeys. _Attacking_ chickens 'n turkeys…" Jiru lightly kicked the cigar-less commander, growing tired of the man's constant muttering.

Growling and massaging the headache building in his temple, Jozu grouched, "We get it, Fossa!"

Blank gaze fixed on the ceiling, Vista muttered, "Did someone truly shout for a Marine to stop 'pecking' them?" Propping himself up on his elbows, he glanced around the room.

Everyone paused, taking in the question. Newgate's brow furrowed, the giant captain concernedly staring into space. Yellow orbs flicked to the snail before wandering the room then back again to the snoozing creature.

"So," Atmos drawled, "our brothers're in a situation that has Marines, kids, birds, bandits and…something to do with rainbows…?"

Namur huffed, "Don't forget the thing about 'points'. Little biters were shouting something about that."

"'Parently, whatever's going on they can't get away either. And you forgot the 'minion' bit," Jiru added.

They all go silent, mulling over what had been relayed to them. Whitebeard took a deep breath and let it out slow, taking a moment to order the information in his mind.

"To summarize, your brothers are in a hostile environment and fighting against Marines, aggressive birds, bandits and, perhaps, children." Thatch pointed a finger at the transponder snail, sheer disbelief written all over his face.

" _That_ did not sound like a fight, Pops. _That_ was more a one-way beat-down with our side on the _losing end_. No pun intended—well, kinda yeah—but that sounded like what happens when you let a buncha wolves into a chicken coop…and our brothers are the frickin' _chickens_!"

Murmurs of agreement swept through the space after the chef said his piece.

Curiel's gaze bounced around the room a couple times before he asked, "Did anyone hear anything about Marco? Pretty sure we heard most everyone that went ashore, but Marco's name and voice never came up."

Silence.

"Right," their father spoke, rising to his feet and making for the door, "Let's turn this ship around and go see what's happened to our family."

* * *

Marco called some time after they'd left the Communications Room to say that, despite the chaos present in the first call, nobody was dead or critically hurt.

"They're a little bruised and battered, but their 'pride is probably hurtin' more than their bodies'," a Twelfth Division member informed the captain, the man's face twisted with puzzlement and disbelief. "Then he said something about Rakuyo finally bein' down for the count and…pretty I heard turkeys? And I heard somethin' I'd swear to be kids cheerin'. Oh, and he also said they found the ASL Trio!"

Not willing to argue with his very persistent set of children, Whitebeard allowed those who'd become fond of the Trio to go ashore. Haruta, being his usual nosy self, also kicked up a fuss about going; the startling snippet they'd heard earlier had him insanely curious.

Therefore, Haruta, Vista, Izou, Thatch, and Namur, along with a small contingent of members from their personal divisions, were the ones to go ashore and see what the situation was with their family. Others had wanted to go, too, but Pops felt five commanders to already be something akin to overkill. Particularly since, from what he can tell of Marco's message, his son wasn't worried about whatever was happening on the island.

Thus, with the _Moby Dick_ sitting beyond the shoals surrounding Monroes Island like a natural barrier, the second landing party find themselves on the beach facing the village.

And staring blankly ahead.

At Marines who, apparently, thought they were turkeys; some marching about with kids perched on their shoulders and others following one or two brats like pet dogs would. There's also something written on the turkey-Marines' uniforms but they're too far away to see what.

At their missing brothers, all of whom looked as if they'd been through hell, survived a war, and were now utterly exhausted and completely done with the world. Well, those who were _conscious_ at the moment.

At kids—little, midget, barely-make-it-past-your-waist _kids_ —waltzing around and acting like they were soldiers of some mighty army. The brats were even calling out little chants and attempting to march in formation. Thatch also swears a majority have legit war paint on their chubby faces.

At the adults and non-turkey Marines who are watching all this, while working on repairing buildings, and behaving like nothing weird or out of the ordinary is occurring.

"Ah! Y'all must be the ones that Commander Marco said would be comin'!"

Slowly, the Whitebeard Pirates' gazes shifted onto a Marine jogging over to them, a friendly smile on his face.

"Thanks, by the way, we could really use the help," he said coming to a stop in front of Vista, hand held out. "Joe woulda been the one to come greet ya's, but lil' Janey ran off with the 'Bandit Boss' and he went to go supervise."

Lightly shaking the proffered limb, the swordsman returned the greeting then asked, "Mind telling us what it is that we are helping with, exactly?"

"And why're our brothers…" Haruta flounderingly gestures at the mass of muddy, paint-covered, exhausted, groaning pirates tied up at the edge of the rocky beach with a few kids and some Marines acting like guards to complete the hanging question.

At the same time as the younger pirate, Thatch enquires, "What's this about a bandit boss?"

The Whitebeards who weren't commanders had gone back to confusedly observing the island's denizens, thanks to hearing one of the weird-acting Marines _gobble_. A collective raising of brows was made when a couple of the turkey-Marines snapped a smart salute to a tiny brat, gobbled off a response, then marched away to carry-out the supposed order. Eyebrows rose higher when the division members finally noticed all the kids and odd Marines were toting around sticks and newspapers like weapons.

What kind of town _is_ this? Could there be something in the water?

"Ah, wait, wait," the Marine called out, waving his hands in a motion for them to remain silent. He looked around behind him before turning back to face the newly arrived (and already severely lost) pirates. "First, why don't I take y'all to see Joe, eh? He knows best about what's goin' on and's in-charge when that lout of a lieutenant's away anyhow."

With that, the man strode off towards the center of the town.

Really needing some answers, the Whitebeards had no choice but to follow the cheerful guide.

Upon reaching their destination, the Marine directed them to a tall man with chestnut hair and sideburns before running off—something about being in the middle of fixing a door when he'd spotted the Whitebeards. Said pirates are barely listening.

They're too busy gawking at someone who they last heard over the transponder desperately trying to run from maniacally laughing brats.

Seventh Division Commander Rakuyo is covered in dried mud, the stuff crumbling off him in bits and pieces. Splotches and swathes of color decorate his entire form, some mixed in with the dried mud, and small blooms of pink litter overtop everything. There's twigs, leaves and grass tangled in his messy dreads; the hair itself is dyed with blue, yellow, orange, red, and various muddled combinations of the individual colors like the rest of his body.

"Jay, Ann-Ann, we need to take him down," Joe patiently tells the two children.

"But-but we _need_ him!" The little girl stomps her foot and pouts when the man just shakes his head.

Seventh Division Commander Rakuyo is bound in copious amounts of rope. It's around his ankles and knees. Binding his hands and wrists together in the front. More around his upper arms and chest to keep the limbs immobile. Not many places, but the sheer quantity of rope used makes the sight rather comical. The knots, no doubt the product of little and inexperienced hands, look like a nightmare to deal with. Interestingly enough, the blond pirate also has what appears to be a sock stuffed into his mouth as a gag.

"Jay's already said that, Ann-Ann, and also why Janey wanted him. What I want to know," the Marine pointed at the trussed-up Whitebeard Commander, "is _why_ you have him up there. What if he falls?"

The little boy waved a stick vehemently behind him in the pirate's direction and huffed, "'Cause we _need_ those points! 'Nd we had Minions 15 and 19 tie him _extra-good_ so he won't fall." Jay gave a gap-toothed grin, looking the definition of smug. "We also practiced our knots but, jus' in case—Janey didn't him hopping away like he tried b'fore."

Seventh Division Commander Rakuyo is suspended fifteen feet in the air between two buildings by eight lengths of rope tied to two adjacent balconies. The dreadlock'd male looked like a pissed, beaten fly strung up in a spider's web.

A pissed fly who was currently trying to pull off the glare of the century, as if daring anyone to say something about his situation.

Peals of laughter split the air, followed shortly by the thud of bodies hitting the dirt street.

"Ahahaha!"

"Wahahaha!"

The noise had everybody (bar the few still too transfixed by the sight of their suspended ship-sibling) staring at the two redheads kneeling and clutching their sides. Several times they tried to stop themselves enough to ask a question, but the unintentional glances at Rakuyo would have the duo quickly succumbing to another fit.

Thatch finally settled for pointing a shaky finger at the Seventh's head. Said pirate's eyes narrowed to slits, a silent "say it and you're dead" hanging ominously over the square. Thatch burst into giggles again at the thought.

Turning to eye the ragged commander, Izou finally caught sight of what had sent his two brothers off the deep end.

"Hahaha! W-why does he-he…pfft-hahahaha!" Haruta took a deep gulp of oxygen, choking a bit as he tried batting down a second fit of chuckles, before trying once more. "Wha's the thing on hi-his head?"

It was a breathy blurb of words, the Twelfth shoving his fist against his mouth to try and gain control of himself immediately after. Thatch did the same, waiting eagerly for the story behind _this_.

Vista, Namur and the other pirates heard a muffled snort and looked to find Izou fighting against his own desire to laugh outrageously. Then the words Haruta blurted caused them to perform another cursory once-over of Rakuyo.

And blinked. Just how had they missed _that_?

Rakuyo wriggled and thrashed fruitlessly as his brothers first gaped then guffawed. Some pointed at him.

Throwing profanities left and right, gag stopping the verbal ones, he swore that they would all pay for this! Especially the Brat Trio!

* * *

By the time the pirates were able to calm down, Joe had sent the two kids off to who-knows-where and Rakuyo was hanging limp—tired from struggling and yelling and now settling for simply glaring at all who were in sight.

Marco made his long overdue appearance right after Joe introduced himself as the Marine currently in command of the local contingent. Twitching at Thatch's loud call, the phoenix nodded to the officer before facing his siblings (ignoring the sharp, angry stare of a particular pirate).

"You got here fast, yoi." Haruta and the various division pirates stared at the blond in shock.

"That's all you have to say?!"

From the back of the group, Namur said, "Last we heard, it sounded like you were all fighting something."

"Oh, no!" Voice tinted with confusion, anger, and worry, Izou strode up to the First Commander and ordered, "You better tell us what the hell is happening around here because we were under the impression that our brothers were fighting a hopeless battle against savage birds and bandits that sounded like children!"

"And why are there Marines walking around pretending to be turkeys?" Vista added.

A passing villager, overhearing the pirate, called out, "One of 'em's a chicken!"

The group stared at the retreating figure before all eyes swerved back to the zoan demandingly.

"Right. I think Joe, here, would be best at answering these. I was," Marco scowled for second, " _interrupted_ when asking earlier so I only know half the story, yoi."

"Alright, I'll just give you lot the short of it fer now," Joe spoke, stepping up to the group of pirates. "Brats call themselves Red, Blue and Yellow Boss, don't bother asking why 'cause I have no clue. Know who the older two are but not the smaller one.

"Moving on, 'bout a couple of days ago, the three started telling a story to the local munchkins that basically led to them acting out the story's final scene earlier today. Kids' parents n' the rest of us were a little nervous until the Trio promised that none of the munchkins would get hurt and that the pirates who would be volunteering to play the game would also help out with repairs afterwards."

Pausing for a moment, Joe analyzed his audience.

"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say y'all had no idea about this agreement."

A scattered shaking of heads and bemused faces answered the middle-aged man.

"Right," the Marine drawled, "from what I've heard 'bout those three I figured as much."

The gathered Division Commanders narrowed their eyes in thought at the muttered statement. Haruta opened his mouth to ask what the officer meant but was cut off as Joe forged on.

"I have to go so I'll make this quick. Your crew were called the 'Rainbow Bandits.' The munchkins were the 'chosen warriors' and commanded 'minions,' aka the Transfer idiots, to help fight against the evil bandits. Each 'bandit' was worth ten points and the guy up there," the Marine officer hooked a thumb at the glowering Rakuyo, "was the so-called boss and worth thirty points thanks to the thing glued to his head."

Watching the Marine about to leave, Namur commented, "But that doesn't explain why he's hanging in the air."

Casting a quick look at the mentioned pirate, Joe smirked. "Ah, that. Well, lil' Janey is tied with another couple kids in terms of points. Being the competitive rascal she is, I heard she asked if there was a way to get any more."

Marco groaned quietly. _'So that's why I've been getting chased by brats everywhere, yoi._ ' Question to ask now is who gave the brats the idea.

Unfortunately for Marco, the sound he made wasn't quiet enough to escape the notice of some of his brothers. Particularly Vista and Izou who were standing closest to him, although Namur had caught it as well.

Tittering, Izou asked, "I'm guessing Birdy was offered up?"

"Ha! Got it in one! Rascal asked if 'the pretty bird' was the bandits' mascot and Fire-Fist was quick to tell her he was worth fifteen points 'cause he sometimes turned into a pineapple-headed bandit. Now she's on the hunt for the 'fruity blue chicken' and thought using Bandit Boss as bait would help catch him. Even got Fire-Fist to help set up a trap!"

 _'Well that explains the odd X-mark on the ground_ ,' the First mused, eyeing the spot a few yards in front of Rakuyo. The dirt appeared to have been recently disturbed then re-packed to try making it blend with the rest of the ground. Marco examined the spot a touch more intently than really required, a vain attempt on his part at ignoring his fellow shipmates' reaction to Joe's words.

Barely halfway through the other's explanation Thatch, Haruta, Izou, and several other pirates were laughing hysterically at the zoan while hanging off each other. Naturally, the rest were also laughing at their brother's plight, but not to the point they required assistance to remain standing.

Letting loose a few chuckles of his own, Joe offered to tell them more later that evening and took his leave. He still needed to round up a couple people to get the Seventh Commander down and convince the rest of the kids to release their 'captives.'

Facing the 'fruity blue chicken,' Vista grinned cheekily and inquired, "So you weren't at the beach to greet us because you're being chased by a little girl?"

The blond's eyes narrowed.

"No. I was helping with repairs until I noticed Ace and his brothers had vanished, yoi." Turning away from the larger man so he wouldn't have to keep looking at that stupid grin, Marco finished, "Ran into the little brat who started chasing after me shouting shit that had other brats coming to harass me."

"But," Namur glanced up at Rakuyo then around for one of those weird Marines, "that man never told us why the other Marines are acting like a bunch of turkeys."

Shrugging, the zoan answered, "From what I've learned, the Trio did something to some of them that makes them talk like turkeys and follow orders from the villagers. None of the villagers or other Marines stationed here care because the affected group are apparently jerks, yoi."

"How in the blazes did those three manage that!?" Looking around, having thought he heard something, Izou mentally waved it off and continued, "Is it connected to Luffy's Fruit or does Sabo have one too?"

This time, it was Marco's turn to wear a cheeky grin (or a mild version of one, at least). "I don't think Sabo has a Fruit power, yoi, but it's definitely not one of Strawhat's."

That statement had all eyes back on the grinning phoenix.

"You know what the brat's Fruit is?!" Haruta exclaimed. He's been trying to piece everything together for weeks now and Marco somehow already _knows_? Did the little brat spill or something?

The Twelfth Commander's cry was soon joined by others in the group, namely the division members…although Vista, Izou, and Thatch sported hungry looks too.

A smug look washed across Marco's features. "The Fruit's call—"

"RED! GET YOUR SKINNY BUTT BACK HERE _NOW_!"

"MAKE ME!"

"QUIT BEIN' A BAD EXAMPLE AND PUT YOUR BLASTED CLOTHES ON!"

" _NEVER_!"

The Whitebeards went still, laughter dying as they gazed about confusedly. The commanders could easily sense the three's presence, none of the Trio currently bothering with masking themselves. And, according to Sabo's shout, Luffy was apparently nude while running amok.

So focused on tracking the Trio's rapid movement, Marco almost missed the arrival of another set of characters. Only these ones were of the unwanted variety.

"Bakbakbak, baaak?"

"Ah! There's the fruit chicken!"

Moving their gazes from the roofs to the small alley behind them, more a gap between two buildings than an actual path, the Whitebeards spotted a little girl. Her hair was done up in little pigtails and she was seated on the shoulders of a tall Marine whose label read 'Minion 7.' She was also waving a rolled newspaper and pointing at Marco. The Marine, with a serious expression, clucked again questioningly.

"C'mon, Minion 7! After 'im, after 'im!"

At the little girl's urging, the Marine takes off sprinting towards the First Commander as he shouts, "Bakbakbukaaaah!"

With a mutter of something along the lines of "hells no, yoi," Marco transformed and took to the air.

Barely acknowledging the frustrated child next to them, the pirates gape as, right when the Phoenix clears the nearest building's roof, a blur plows into the flaming bird. Marco barely has time to make a surprised squawk before the figure jumps away and the zoan gets pelted by two more blurs. The force from the first hit has already destabilized the Phoenix and the rapid-fire blows of the next two sends the bird earthward. Twin shouts of surprise echo Marco's own cry of shock as they fall.

Unluckily for Marco, the two blurs use him as a springboard and escape right before they all hit the ground. This results in the disoriented firebird tumbling into the damn trap Ace had made near Rakuyo. With a snap and tug, the Phoenix is caught up in a fishing net and hoisted aloft to hang in a tangled mess upside-down.

The Whitebeards (even Rakuyo) are left dumbfounded at the whiplash turn of events; even the little girl's and chicken-Marine's jaw rested on the floor. An equally stunned azure and yellow-gold bird blinked slowly, blankly staring at first the ground under his beak then gradually lifting his head to view his gawking family; all the while Marco's mind was racing to figure out what the devil happened to him.

In the ensuing silence, a mild whistle of appreciation accompanied by a couple polite handclaps sounded from a roof.

"Congratulations, Yellow. Your trap actually frickin' _worked_."

A look revealed the speaker to be the blond of the enigmatic Trio. Sabo was crouched down on top of one of the buildings anchoring half of the ropes holding Rakuyo. Searching for Ace, the Whitebeards found the fiery raven a building down from the blond and standing on the roof of a store whose balcony railing held a pulley holding up Marco's net.

"The hell's that tone for!?"

"Not that. Just…I can't believe Commander Fire-Turkey _fell_ for it."

Marco felt a tick growing on his temple listening to these two.

"Ne, ne, what's Goldilocks doing? Is he supposed to be a fly?"

"Nah, he's bait," Sabo and Ace reply flatly.

"Shishishishi! Why would you use a zombie as bait?"

Twisting around, the pirates watch as Luffy—who is currently wearing nothing but an oversized pair of boxers—hops out of a broken upper story window then jumps up to land on the roof opposite of Sabo, above Rakuyo.

"Fire-turkeys don't eat _zombies_. They eat fish, and birds, and deer, and salamanders, and firelizards, and—"

"And we're done," Ace interrupts.

"Wait a second." Sabo pointed a puzzled finger at the glowering Seventh Commander. "Why are you calling Mister Commander Goldilocks a zombie?"

The Whitebeards were a little curious about that too and looked up at the smaller raven as they waited for his answer.

Except for Marco and Rakuyo. Right now, the former wanted to laugh as he recalled the encounter; little, halting hisses escaped his beak instead. The latter was trying to stare the evil brat into spontaneously combusting. Both reactions weren't missed by their fellow commanders.

"Threw the whack-'em-stick at him. Got back up so threw a rock. Got back up again," Luffy shrugged.

Both older brothers sighed, shooting the youngest a look of fond exasperation.

Chuckles started breaking out hearing the teen's explanation. Rakuyo turned his efforts of visually roasting those who offended him onto his snickering family.

"Dammit! Get back here before I roast you, _ijit_!"

"You're a _ijit_!"

"Damn gull turd! Put clothes on _now_!"

"No! Got shorts!"

"MY/YELLOW'S BOXERS DON'T COUNT, RUBBER-FOR-BRAINS!"

Vista looked down from where the Trio disappeared over the roof tops…and grinned. Poking Izou, the Fifth gestured to the little girl walking over to a netted-Marco. The rest of the sniggering bunch went quiet as they watched the child waltz right up to the wary-looking Phoenix.

Smacking the bird right between the eyes with her paper weapon with each word, the child proclaimed with smug glee, "Ha! I win, 'tupid fruity chicken!"

Rakuyo snorted and started laughing through his gag.

The rest of the Whitebeards, catching Marco's expression of stunned disbelief and the absolutely proud little girl next to him, broke down as well. None could stand; even Namur was bowing on the ground and belting deep chuckles. They didn't stop even when the little munchkin left to "go take a nap."

The Phoenix started plotting ways to get even with the Trio—specifically Ace. He _was not_ going to take being trussed up like a thrice-damned, common, catch-of-the-day _bird_ lying down!

* * *

 _"Yo, Pops!"_

"Thatch," Newgate greeted his son over the transponder snail. "What's going on?"

 _"You wouldn't believe it! Everyone who first landed is covered in paint and they fought against a bunch of kids and minion-Marines as bandits after trying to follow the Trio through an obstacle course! Oh! And the minion-Marines got turned into turkeys by the ASL Trio! Well, one's a chicken for some reason..."_

Whitebeard raised a brow at the commander's rushed summary. Those nearest his seat, among them the remaining commanders, eyed the snail bemusedly.

"Did 'e just say the Marines were turkeys?" Fossa glanced at Jiru who shrugged.

"Would explain the 'savage birds' we heard."

Blenheim crossed his arms and asked, "When did Rakuyo and Marco become bandits?"

 _"Give me that, you idiot! Hey, Pops, sorry about that."_ A look reminiscent of relief spread over the pirate captain's face.

"Izou, mind explaining what your brother was trying to say?" The snail rolled its eyes.

 _"First of all, the locals are inviting us to come ashore. There's supposedly a break in the reef barrier surrounding Monroes at the northern end. Tide's just starting to go out so the_ Moby _should be able to make it passed the shoals there."_

"Alright, we'll be there shortly," Whitebeard replied, waving for one of his sons to go inform those manning the helm. "Now, back to what Thatch was trying to say…"

 _"Yes, well. We've discovered the Trio to be very resourceful and quick crowd charmers."_ The kimono wearer paused before continuing flatly, _"They should also not be given time to stew over things that upset them. You should_ see _what they've done in just two days!"_

Curiel stared at the snail.

"What—"

 _"You'll see and hear all about it when you get here, don't worry. Anyway, apparently upon landing, Birdy and Rakuyo were confronted by Strawhat. Little brat pissed Rakuyo off and got him and the other division members to chase him through a trap-filled section of wood. Marco just flew over…"_

The Whitebeards were given the full account of events. Izou, once they got Marco and Rakuyo down, had gone around the village asking questions to try and get an idea of the events over the past few days since the Trio made landfall. Or, when they were _estimated_ to have made landfall, seeing as nobody he'd talked with had known of their presence beyond two days ago.

Did that mean they were still out at sea for a whole day, and possibly half of another, depending on when they left the ship?

The crossdresser also told them how the three brats offered the Whitebeards' assistance with repairing their village. Those listening were left a little speechless at the Trio's daring with that one. Izou was fast to say that most repairs, thanks to the previous efforts of the ASL bunch and the resident Marines, was nearly done; only requiring another day or so to achieve completion.

He finished recounting everything he'd seen as the ship began passing through the reef gap (which was only _this side of_ wide enough to allow the _Moby Dick_ passage).

 _"And then the brats ran off to force Strawhat into wearing something other than his brother's boxers! Brat was running about without a care and laughing up until a half hour ago and then we didn't hear them anymore,"_ Izou huffed, smiling on the other end.

The resident Whitebeards barely heard over their loud, bellowing laughter upon hearing what happened to Marco and Rakuyo. Naturally, Newgate was the loudest but Atmos was a close second.

"Hehehehe! Haaah…so do you know how the Trio managed all that? 'Specially with the Marines-turned-turkey-minions?" Blamenco inquired.

 _"Hmmm…no, not really. Most around here believe it to be some sort of Fruit ability but—"_

 _"Sabo doesn't have a Fruit! He told me so himself,"_ Thatch interrupted, again. _"Ow!"_

 _"I was getting to that, quit it! As I was saying, before this lug butted in, it's probably not the work of a Fruit. I'm thinking—"_

 _"That's right! Guys, Marco believes he knows what Luffy's Fruit is but he won't tell us! Make him tell us, Pops! Plea-owowow!"_

 _"Stop interrupting me, you Neanderthal oaf!"_

Several winced as they heard the Fourth pleading for their irritated sibling to stop hitting him with "the stupid fan."

"Speakin' of Marco," Jozu broke in, "where is he?"

 _"Some old guy asked him to find the Trio not too long ago. Ah, and Pops?"_

"Yes, my son?" Instead of Izou it was Thatch who replied, the chef's voice heavy with seriousness and a tint of concern.

 _"The blue chicken wants to talk with you later about something."_

* * *

Sitting ten feet up in a rather dead-looking tree, Sabo was drawing in his notebook. Beneath him on the beach Ace sat cross-legged with his eyes closed in a ring of fire. Luffy wandered about a few yards from the logia, picking up rocks and either throwing them at Ace or tossing them into a pile.

On occasion, the dragon would toss one Sabo's way. The older sibling would dodge or block the projectile without looking; if he caught it, Sabo would send the stone Ace's way or throw them back at Lu.

None were surprised by the appearance of a large, burning blue and gold bird gliding towards them from the north. Something in the Phoenix told Marco that landing at the base of Sabo's tree, thus putting himself between the younger blond and the two raven-heads, could unintentionally send a negative message. With this warning in mind, Marco chose a perch near Sabo's; close without intruding in the sibling's personal space.

Ace tensed slightly at the foreign presence, taking a few seconds to deduce that it must be Marco. Sabo took advantage of the distraction to pelt the fire-user in the back with a rock.

/( _FineOkay Ignore Practice!_ )/

The freckled teen grumbled but listened to his brother's admonition and returned his attention to the flames and flying rocks. Luffy giggled at Ace's scowl. Casting a brief glance at the fiery bird, the dragon, too, resumed his assigned task.

Waiting a few minutes to see if he'd be asked (or demanded) to leave, the Phoenix observed the brothers. Relief touched the commander when Sabo, curious as to why the man sought them out, told Marco he was welcome to sit if he wanted.

"Thanks, yoi," Marco said. His branch was off to the side and a few feet lower than Sabo's so he had to look up at the teen.

The younger blond hummed in reply, busy with the creation of his current sketch. "Looked like you have something to say and I am a little curious as to what it is," Sabo mumbled. He frowned, noticing one of his lines wasn't quite right and needed fixing.

"That old innkeeper asked if he could borrow Strawhat's...talents tonight." Marco sent the teen a questioning look.

"Hm. Mr. Kade didn't seem particularly fond of the idea yesterday. Suppose last night changed his opinion."

Ace grinned, glad his little brother was (hopefully) being given a chance.

Luffy, being the opportunistic imp he is, noted the older's minor distraction and threw a stone enhanced with _ki_ at his forehead. Both Sabo and Marco donned looks of amusement when Ace didn't dodge and now sported a small red mark above his brow.

Watching the laughing shrimp leaping about and avoiding an annoyed Ace's fireballs, the First Commander said, "I thought being a logia-type meant Ace wouldn't be affected by things like normal rocks hitting him, yoi."

Sabo's pencil strokes never lost their rhythm and he made sure his face didn't show anything.

"Generally-speaking yes, that is true," Sabo concurred. "However, as you've just seen, our brother has control over his body's natural reflex to let objects phase through him. Utilizing that reflex right now would be rather counterproductive for this training exercise."

Marco covertly eyed the blond teen for a moment before letting the matter drop.

There was nothing in Sabo's behavior to suggest the younger was lying and his tone had been of one stating a well-known fact. Marco had hoped to discover if the Trio really did know the basics of haki and this seemed like a good time as any to discreetly ask about it. He'd seen Ace get hit by his brothers when the freckled raven would let something pass through him moments prior, thus lending greater support to the commanders' and Pops' running debate of the subject.

 _'But if Ace has been controlling the reaction this entire time…_ ' Then the idea of the three brothers knowing how to use haki just lost quite a bit of steam. Yes, the three were incredibly adept at hiding their presence but that could be unconscious use of the skill.

Maybe.

"How long did it take to get your brother wearing something besides boxers?"

All three siblings mentally sighed in relief, the feeling much stronger in the older two.

"Too long for just a damn vest and sandals," Ace growled. He opened his eyes to pin Luffy with an annoyed glare. Sabo did the same, only his eyes conveyed a touch more exasperation.

The dragon looked down at his attire—sandals, shorts (Ace's boxers), red vest—then scowled at his Treasures with puffed cheeks. "Shorts _are_ clothes…and was fine before so why not now?" Crossing his arms and turning around to face the sea, Luffy grumbled, "Annoying clothes. Don't see why one needs them. Just get in the way."

Two bland looks and one of mild confusion bored into the straw-hatted runt's back.

"Do you three have this…discussion…often?" Marco bemusedly observed the teens.

Both older boys scoffed.

"Please," the blond sibling drawled, "A 'discussion' involves active participation of all parties."

"This is like arguing with a lump of seaweed…or, worse, a brain-damaged idiot," Ace finished.

The zoan glanced between the two older siblings.

"How's an idiot worse than seaweed, yoi?"

"Seaweed doesn't talk back," Sabo and Ace intoned.

Luffy twisted his head around—startling Marco and causing a queasy sensation to build in his gut because the kid's body was _still faced towards the ocean_ —to stick his tongue out at the two. When the teen started bowing a raspberry, Ace got fed up with the display and started shooting flame bullets.

 **/( _FunExcited PlayPlayPlay!_ ) Missed! Missed! Where's _Atce_ aiming? /** Luffy called, giggling as he swerved and dodged around Ace's attack.

The freckled raven growled and upped the ante. _'Let's see ya dodge_ this _, ya rubber lizard!'_

Both blonds sweatdropped as Ace shrank the bullets by half and increased their speed, sending a storm of them the dragon's way. Luffy yelped, though the grin and air of excitement never left his face, and redoubled his efforts.

Swinging his aim around to follow Lu up and down the beach, Ace laughed with glee at the curses occasionally falling out of the younger's mouth; the flame-bullets wouldn't hurt the dragon but they'd leave an irritating sting behind. And Luffy was getting stung fairly often.

"Is this—"

"Normal? Yes," Sabo sighed. "I swear they are related to parasites with how they feed off of each other sometimes."

Ace twisted around to glare up it his younger sibling. Jabbing a finger at the top-hatted blond, the other hand still shooting at Lu, Ace called, "Like you're any better! You got into a debate with Lu over what to turn the idiot Marines into! For an _hour_!"

"Oh, yeah? You argued with him for twice that over your _tie_ with Jinbei, ash-for-brains!"

 **/( _Help? Acedistractplease?_ )/**

"Hey! I woulda _won_ that fight without you two's rules!"

The zoan's eyes narrowed.

Sabo grit his teeth. "Then it would've defied the point of being a fair fight and Lu would get mad. We were also supposed to keep from drawing too much attention, numbskull!" Taking a breath, the blond muttered to himself, "Though we spectacularly failed on that front in the end, anyway."

Catching an odd movement, Marco switched his gaze from the two arguing teens to the thing creeping up behind Ace. He fought a smirk at seeing Strawhat, hands full of seaweed, sneaking towards the oblivious fire-user.

Splat!

Ace stopped firing off into space at the feel of something _slimy_ and _wet_ colliding with the back of his head. Sabo almost fell off his branch he was laughing so hard; that look of 'what the fuck?' on his brother's face was absolutely priceless! Marco, not bothering to hide his chuckles, managed to grab the younger's journal as it fell from Sabo's lap, but missed the pencil.

Turning back around to yell at Luffy, mouth already wide open and in the process of saying (yelling) the dragon's name, Ace received another attack of the green sea plant. An entire face and mouthful of it, to be precise.

Luffy dropped to the ground, clutching his sides and howling at his success while rolling back and forth.

Spitting the salty weed out of his mouth and wiping the nasty crap off his face, and hair when a small piece plopped onto his shoulder, Ace glared murderously at the laughing dragon. A vein pulsed at hearing the other two laughing in tree.

Scooping up a handful of the greenish-brown mess, the fire-user exclaimed /You're dead, Light!/

"Eh?" Dark orbs squinted open, sight bleary and filled with water from laughing so hard. They shot fully open once the dragon registered his older brother's presence rapidly closing and caught the glow of flames.

Sabo laughed harder when Luffy shrieked and tried to scramble away from a flaming Ace. The smaller raven barely got his feet under him before Ace jumped him, pinning the fledgling to the ground and shoving the seaweed down Luffy's back. Placing his now-weedless hand atop a struggling Lu's shirt, an evilly grinning Ace firmly smooshed and rubbed the stuff all over his sibling's back to increase the 'ew'-factor.

Listening to the cries of "Ew!" and "Stop, Ace!" Sabo laughed even harder.

Marco, the only one paying any attention to what was happening, quickly hopped to a different branch when he saw a lumpy projectile heading their way. The ball of seaweed fell apart mid-flight, leaves and tendrils of the slimy plant coating Sabo and the rest of the area where he sat. Marco, journal held at his side, smirked at the baffled look on Sabo's face. A few seconds later it evolved into an affronted glare.

"'Ey, Sabo, instead of 'seafoam' I think we should start callin' ya _seaweed_ ," Ace hooted, Luffy snickering next to him. "Blue n' green go great together anyway! Hahaha!"

"Ne, does that mean Sabo's the Seaweed Prince now?" Luffy grinned as Ace fell over, the older raven succumbing to a new wave of laughs that had his stomach and lungs aching.

The First Commander's fairly certain he heard something pop as Sabo's eyes narrowed on the two ravens.

"I think," Sabo replied through gritted teeth, cracking his knuckles as he spoke, "that you two need a reminder of who's better in hand-to-hand."

Ace and Lu's boisterous laughter trailed into breathless, hesitant chuckles.

"Eh?" both brunets confusedly gazed up at their irate sibling.

Marco placidly watched as Sabo launched from his perch at the gasping, and rapidly paling, duo below with a vindictive battle cry of, "You're mincemeat, ya _ijits_!"

The Whitebeard Pirate is pretty sure that the squeak of fear which escaped Ace's mouth was completely unintentional. Ace also pulled off an impression of Luffy's prior fruitless scrambling as he attempted to dodge the vengeful brother's fists of fury, only to trip on said smaller raven at the last second.

For the next half hour, Marco got a front row seat to a weird seaweed-throwing, water-splashing and water-dunking, quasi-wrestling, three-way fist-fight match. The zoan wasn't aware of the warm half-smile quirking the edges of his lips as he listened to their laughter and goading of each other. He was, however, aware of the little bubble of that same warmth pooling somewhere low in his chest.

 _'I think I see why Pops wants them, yoi.'_

* * *

 **A/N: So, any guesses on Sabo's cool, totally awesome, kick-ass skill? Anyone?! Hint, there's two movies (both awesome!) where one of the main characters wields this skill like magic! Saw both recently (more like a few months ago now), but re-watched again just to see if what I wanted was feasible for Sabo's character. It is! Will make it work because I seriously would love to have this ability! Think of all the mayhem you could cause!** **‟\\(ᴖ◊ᴖ )/" Glorious chaos!**

 **And the whole "turkey-minion-Marines" thing? Was because I originally started working on this particular scene while thinking of Thanksgiving (back when I couldn't move too well because of the stupid, damn foot and was wondering if it'd be healed enough to walk okay(ish) on to cook for the holiday). Also, really wanted to tie in a quick (cute-ish) scene with Marco that would be kinda funny. Decided on being somewhat nice to him because he's had a difficult time with ASL despite trying…well, not his hardest, but still trying hard. So yeah, went easy on him.**

 **And yes, not much furthering of plot here this chapter. Completely understand any frustration this brings up. On a plus note, more to expect from next chapter. There _will_ be furthering of plots with that one. And the one after. (P.S. Still looking at recommendations for possibly changing Macey/Flaily/Spikey's name. Just a reminder!)**

 **Yes, "siccing" is a word people. It is pronounced like "sicking", which (coincidentally) is also another accepted spelling of the word. I just like the first and how it doesn't make it seem as if people were getting "sick" when, instead and more correctly, Luffy was unleashing the hounds of hell (or just two overprotective brothers) on their sorry asses.**

 **As for the Marines names, those were just the first things that came to me. Or, some of the first. Usually the first was something like Bob, Bill, Bo, Joe, etc. Eventually went to Google and typed in "super common boy names". The name "Bob" is being saved for something later that I have planned regarding a small piece of ASL's past. Nothing bad, more funny actually, but yeah. Not using it yet. Tweaking a few details here and there but that snippet's practically fully written and done, just deciding when/where to stick it.**

 **Furthermore, about the word " _íjit_ "… That comes from the slang way of saying "idiot", where the 'd' degrades into a 'j' and the '-iot' shrinks to 'it'. Basically, whatever you're calling an "idiot" isn't worth the effort of actually saying the word correctly and thus it gets shortened to "ijit". It's also what I call the two annoying-as-all-fucking-hell "dogs"—that are the size of _footballs_ and therefore should not be considered _dogs_ in the first place. They're yappy, obnoxious, evil, autonomous squeaky-toys that require food/water instead of batteries—instead of the actual names my siblings (who they belong to) gave them. If I ever refer to them, they are either: Ijit 1 and Ijit 2, Gremlin and Gizmo (technically same thing/creature; both are evil, they just look different), Evel and Knievel (because one's just a snooty, evil little shit and the other is flat out stupid; always are within the vicinity of each other so just easier to call both and be done ["Evel Knievel, get your fuzzy ass over here!" "Yip!" "Yip!"]), Skunkbutt and Fluffit/Shagcarpet (one's dark-colored but has a gray-white strip going up the middle of their tail, the other is a fluffy mass of nothing but fur [coincidentally, I also call one of our cats "Fluffit"]), Peanut and Chickpea (in accordance with the size of their brain and scope of intelligence, the first being around a centimeter long and the other generally 5-8mm). If, when calling them "ijit" and I deign to differentiate the two retards, the smaller (more grumpy/moody/evil) one is "Ijit" and the larger (super fluffy, spazzy, walking-shag-carpet) one is "Twijit".**

 **(For the record, yes, I think the little shits are cute. _However_ , it's my belief—and working theory—that _this_ is how evil gets into people's homes, never to leave. They look so damn cute and adorable that, no matter how evil they are and how much you try to fight it, you fall victim to their cutesiness every time and can't kick them out. Evil has learned it can easily worm its way into our homes if it's wrapped up in a cute, fluffy/fuzzy, adorable exterior. Be careful of cute and fluffy little animals/things people, evil is a wily and sneaky shit; look what happened with the Furbies several years back. Those things were a disguised plague of evil!)**

 **TERMS:**

 **Ijit —[ ĭ-jit; pronounced like "fidget", only without the 'f' and the '-et' becomes "it"] Term for something small (usually an animal) that's considered to be annoying, and/or exhibits spastic behavior (aka, acts like a total spaz), and severely lacking in intelligence. Can be used either in reference to said creature or as a method of light teasing.**

 **Íjit —[ē-jit; emphasis on the 'í' at the beginning with 'jit' being short and abrupt] Same meaning as " _ijit_ ", but used with a more insulting connotation to it. Often spoken in conjunction with a hiss. **


	17. Pain of Remembrance!

**A/N: First off, I would like to apologize to everyone for the long hiatus. Life got very busy very fast and only started to even out very recently. It was just a cascade of shit that happened one after another and made working on any chapters extremely difficult. For those interested in** ** _that_** **update, it will be elaborated on in the bottom A/N some. I know you're all impatient to get going on the chapter so I'll try to keep this short.**

 **One, here's where we find out** ** _what_** **Sabo's epic mystery skill is! It won't be discussed much this chapter but we can look forward to more next one. Promise! P.S. Congratulations to those of you who guessed it!**

 **Two, I've got the scenes planned out (mostly), but I can't decide who should meet up with the Trio first: Garp or Shanks. Please cast your votes people! (Also, to those who have PM'd and asked, I say yes, Smoker** ** _has_** **met the Trio and he will be mentioned and showing up** **eventually** **. In the anime, he seemed to have something of a grudge against Luffy without ever meeting him so I want to give that some substance. BUT! I already know what I'm doing with that so please only vote on the Garp vs Shanks deal, thanks!)**

 **Three, I haven't completely decided on the whole Dark-Dark-Fruit-stays-with-Teach thing. I have most of the part where Teach reveals what a dick he is done, but the Fruit is something of a toss-up. Can't decide if the bastard keeps it, Sabo gets it, Thatch gets it, or something else. Just something to keep on the backburner for now, though I'll welcome suggestions.**

 **Four, I've had questions on who discovers what Luffy is first among the Whitebeards and all I can say is that I have it narrowed down to: Marco, Thatch, Namur, Vista, Izou, and Haruta. Final decision will involve a blindfold, a paintball gun, and moving targets (because I accidentally broke my dartboard—either it was old or it didn't like me practicing knife-throwing skills on it). Will let you know who the lucky winner is…maybe. I could just leave you all in suspense until the actual moment it happens while jerking your chain along the way~** **J**

 **Disclaimers:** **show/manga/characters and other stuff related to that belongs to rightful owners/parties…yada yada yada… And everyone should get cake! Or gelato. Gelato is** ** _awesome_** **! Except the mint kind because mint is** ** _NASTY_** **! Don't trust super green slushies! Just because something** ** _looks_** **like it'll be 'green apple' doesn't mean it won't taste like super minty mouthwash instead! (Remember people: Sample sips save stomachs!)**

* * *

 **Chapter 17: Pain of Remembrance! September Draws to a Close**

* * *

The sun was settling on the horizon, painting the sky an array of red, yellow, orange, purple and a bruised blue towards the east. Bonfires dotted the beach in front of the town, with one of the larger ones being near the tavern/inn overlooking the waterfront. Logs and benches were scattered about for seating and an occasional chair brought by someone could be spotted here and there. Food and liquor were passed around liberally, the Fourth Division having helped the islanders with preparing a feast for everyone to enjoy.

Laughter and amicable conversation filled the air. Most of the Whitebeards who'd been forced into participating with the village brats' "game" now (somewhat) presentable and lamenting their experiences with any who would lend an ear. Rakuyo was going to great pains in his effort to avoid being singled out by the rambunctious kids running underfoot—including, but not limited to, having a large towel wrapped around his head like a turban to try and hide the stupid feather abomination that _was still frickin' glued to his temple_! (All his family sniggered at the sight alongside the Marines and many townsfolk.)

The Trio (plus Marco) showed up just before everything got going, the three siblings grinning and covered in pieces of seaweed. All four were also smiling, or grinning slightly in Marco's case, as they carried a bunch of large boars over to some of the bigger fires. Luffy brought his pile over to a separate (unlit) large stack of firewood and was joined by his brothers once they'd deposited their cargo. After lighting the wood, Sabo handed his journal to Ace and the logia walked off towards the tavern.

Sending Lu off to occupy the children, Sabo began finishing skinning the semi-prepared pigs. Though Marco had accompanied the Trio to hunt down the beasts, the three had enough time to themselves to let Luffy snack on the animals' hearts while gutting their catch. Ace quickly re-joined the blond sibling, spitting the prepared boars and driving the wooden spears into the ground to roast the meat. Everything went nice and smooth with Luffy sated enough so the dragon wouldn't drag the process out by trying to filch the pigs. Sabo left Ace—who was shamelessly using his flames to speed the roasting of the pork—to watch their baby brother until Ace called for them.

Izou wandered over to chat with Ace, exchanging a brief greeting with the blond brother as he passed the teen. Vista, standing with a few members of his division and Fossa, stopped poking at Rakuyo when he spotted Sabo walking away from Izou and Ace. A scan of the beach showed no energetic black-haired shrimp darting about and he decided to follow Sabo to see if that was where he was headed. Listening to Marco, Whitebeard surreptitiously watched from where he sat some ways down from the Trio's bonfire.

* * *

"But we want to play!"

"Play! Play!"

Luffy smiled at the Human hatchlings clinging to one of his arms, letting them dangle in the air as he walked. He wiggled the limb and smiled wider at their delighted squeals and giggles. Lifting his head and taking an exaggeratedly deep breath through his nose, he playfully whined, "But I smell _food_!"

Groans of "Red's _always_ hungry" and "You can eat _later_ " were heard amongst a series of plaintiff moans. Behind the group of hatchlings clustered around him, Luffy could hear chuckling and a snort from his big brother and the two Whitebeards accompanying them. The fledgling shot a quick smile at his Sea, feeling the subtle waves of his brother's fond amusement.

A little hand latched onto Luffy's free one at his side as a voice chirped hopefully, "Then play?"

Giving the limb bearing two giggling hatchlings another wiggle, he looked down to find the new hand belongs to a grinning, bright-eyed boy with dark hair. "Umm…" **/( _Uncertain Help?_ )/**

"I think it's a little late to play, the sun is just about gone," Sabo cut in, returning Luffy's gratitude with a mental brush of warmth. "Your parents said something about being in bed by a certain time, right?"

A chorus of denials and complaints filled the air. Some try pleading with him to skip eating so they could keep playing; others wheedle Sabo about how they're "big kids" so they can "stay up longer". One came rushing in to plop down on the dragon's foot, forcing him to stop so he wouldn't accidentally hurt the hatchling. He waited for the monkey-imitator to get a good grip on his leg before resuming his walk towards food, the added weight barely registering.

Luffy ignores the _dissappointmentrefusaldenialhopeunhappysad_ thickening the air alongside the hatchlings' pleading, using his connection with his nestmates to strengthen the shields around his mind. (Was he this 'loud' to _Okýsui_ when he was a tiny hatchling?)

He frowned, stomach feeling like he swallowed a rock—a really, really _big_ one. Luffy didn't feel so hungry anymore. Maybe he should play with the hatchlings after all; their _happyexcitementfun_ might help dampen his own _painhurtsorrowanger_.

/( _Worry Concern_ ) What's wrong, Light?/

He shrugged, not knowing how to answer Sabo. Some of the weight eased when his big brother responded with the mental equivalent of a hug—compounded by Ace adding his own, though with a touch of confusion lacing the gesture.

(Luffy _loved_ his Treasures!)

Distracted, it took the dragon a moment to notice that one of the pirates began talking and had garnered the Huma hatchlings' attention.

"L-er, _Red_ can play with you guys tomorrow 'cause we'll be helping your folks with rebuilding." Luffy glanced back to see that it was Cheek-Pouch Guy who spoke. A little girl, who looked similar to the child gripping the dragon's hand, sat smiling on the pirate's shoulder.

That same little girl patted at Cheek-Pouch Guy's head to get his attention. "But Mr. Pirate, when they're no' helping, Red, Blue, and Yeh-Yell-low—" Luffy turned back around, smiling like _Sábvó_ at how the hatchling stumbled over _Atce_ 's nickname. "—go play without us!"

"Uh, well…" The dragon mentally snickered alongside his brother at Big Mini-Mustache Guy; Sabo projecting his view of the two pirates' panic-tinged expression.

Lu began lowering his arm, so the children (still giggling) hanging from it could touch the ground, and (carefully) lifting it back up repeatedly. The action elicited a new round of giggles and happy squeals of "Again, again!". He basked in the pure emotions emanating from the two hatchlings, using them to further insulate him from the surrounding negativity. (It also reminded the fledgling of how his Treasures liked playing his tail on occasion.)

Sabo apparently decided to put the pirates out of their misery, or took pity on Luffy wanting to get to the food faster. "If you want, then we can play with you guys in the morning until lunch."

"But tha's _tomorrow_ ," the boy holding tightly to Lu's hand piteously cried, glancing despondently between Luffy and Sabo.

"Boss Red might not want to play at all if you kids are being mean and keeping him from eating dinner." Cue a mass of horrified looks aimed at the dragon (minus the duo attached to his arm). The little hatchling stuck on his leg gripped the limb tighter, fear and anxiousness curling into his scent. "Without dinner, Red would also be too tired and hungry to play tomorrow even if he _did_ want to." The many pairs of eyes watching him grew even wider.

Progress forward towards the food was halted as the group of hatchlings pounced, swarming around Luffy as they apologized and pleaded for forgiveness. He could feel his older sibling's desire to laugh at the sight though the sound never parted from the blond. Luffy laughed instead, assuring the distressed children he would forgive them if they let him go eat (only to be met with demands of "then we play").

(Luffy wasn't totally aware of what the two big Humans thought. The little ones were loud in both volume, scent, and emotion as they milled about him. Lu could make out the two murmuring to one another and muted tones of amusement and curiosity, but not much else.)

 **/( _Hungry Amused Calmplease?_ )/**

"And," Sabo interrupted the mess of noise, voice easily gaining all the Humans' focus, "if you kids don't go to bed soon your parents might not let you play tomorrow either. Or you'll sleep past lunch and miss playing with us." _That_ seemed to do the trick.

Half the hatchlings ran ahead, throwing calls of "hurry, hurry" behind them. The rest began prodding, pushing, and pulling Luffy and Sabo after their fellows, earnestly directing the brothers to the beach. When not begging for the grinning and laughing siblings to "move faster", the Human hatchlings were tossing promises that they would go to bed immediately—"So we can get up _real_ early and play!"

Luffy just laughed and agreed, letting Sabo take the two hatchlings dangling from his arm so they wouldn't fall and hurt themselves. The child that'd been glued to his leg let go to grab his now-free hand and started tugging like the first on Luffy's other side. Carefully avoiding stumbling over the excitable mob around him, Luffy kept an eye on the two holding his hands; he didn't want them to pull too hard and get yanked back by his Fruit ability.

* * *

"Damn. Actually liked that song 'fore those idiots mangled it."

 _"My rum lies over the ocean  
_ _My rum lies over the sea~!  
_ _The greatest rum lies over the ocean  
_ _So bring back that magic rum to me! To me!  
_ _Briiing back! Briiing back!  
_ _Oh bring back my rummy to me~!"_

"…It is pretty catchy, I guess…"

Strawhat Runt was perched at a stand-up piano that had been moved from inside the inn/tavern to the establishment's deck overlooking the beach. Fire-Fist sat next to him, playing a harmonica as skillfully as the runt did the piano. The Bloody Gentleman sat on the rail next to the two ravens; a tankard in one hand and a black knife-come-maestro's-wand in the other that he used to direct some poorly singing (and dancing?) Marines.

Blenheim is positive the three brothers haven't laughed and smiled this much in the Whitebeards' presence since coming aboard as they have just this day. It was almost weird seeing Fire-Fist's face set in the form of anything other than a scowl for more than a few minutes. Here, Blenheim thinks the smile on both older siblings' faces, bordering on splitting for delighted laughter, has been present for a good two _hours_. (Would've been longer, except the runt did something to the freckled teen's food or drink; the result was several imaginative obscenities being slung around by Fire-Fist as he lobbed fireballs at the little imp.)

"So apparently not even Marco and the others knew about the Trio's musical talent." Blenheim grunted, took a swig of his ale (absently noting the low level of the drink), then glanced down at Haruta next to him.

Judging by the scowl on the younger's face, the Ninth Commander figured Haruta had been seeking more and been thwarted. Grinning, humored at his brother's expense, he asked, "Did our little brother not find what he was looking for?" He laughed at the light punch to his side and the huffy response.

"He admits to knowing what Strawhat's Devil Fruit is but refuses to say anything!"

"He say why?" Blenheim had money riding on the Fruit being a Paramecia-type and a couple of personal wagers against Jozu and Fossa's adamance of Luffy being a Zoan.

Haruta groused, "Little twerp asked him not to spill. Thinks it's funny we haven't guessed it yet."

Chuckling at the Twelfth's irritation, he inquired if Haruta'd asked Rakuyo yet. His brother scoffed.

"Idiot ditched the party with 'Menco to see if they could get that… _thing_ off his head. 'Sides, he was too busy running from little kids to be of much use." Haruta eyed one of the division members who fell victim to the children's earlier abuse; one of many who'd been jumpy around the midgets (when they couldn't be outright avoided) and only relaxed after bedtime was announced. "What kinda pirate's afraid of _kids_?"

Recalling the transmission they received in the Communications Room, Blenheim resisted the urge to shudder as he mumbled something to the effect of "can't really blame them." He'd listened to several accounts of the incident—Marine, townsfolk, child, and victim—and, like his father and crewmates, found himself vacillating between extreme amusement, pity, and something that was either shock or surprise. Probably both, though most of it centered around the fact the Trio formed a group of five- to twelve-year-old kids into a (successful) militia.

"You know where Namur is? Thought I saw him talking to the twerp earlier—" A shout had both commanders turning back to the piano.

Strawhat, fingers skimming over ivory keys flawlessly, was laughing at a gaping Fire-Fist and stunned-looking Bloody Gentleman. At some point, the Logia had moved over to stand next to the blond and both were now dripping with the remains of someone's drink—or drinks, probably from the small pile of Marines who'd tripped and fallen face-first while trying to dance on the other side of the rail. The older pair of brothers appeared to mutter something and a huge, sunny smile—Blenheim immediately thanked whatever gods existed that he wasn't anywhere _near_ the teen; Thatch sometimes smiled like that after devising the "perfect prank" for the week—broke out on Strawhat Runt's face.

They watched the little imp slink from the piano to the open, wide doorway to the inn's main room; Fire-Fist, now balanced on the railing where the blond sat, was too preoccupied with shouting down at the laughing drunkards alongside his brother. Blenheim lost sight of the runt when he disappeared inside the establishment. One of the Marines must've noticed the absence, too, and said something because the runt's brothers stopped yelling long enough to gaze around the piano in confusion. The Bloody Gentleman apparently spotted the missing Trio member because he stilled for a second, catching Fire-Fist's attention.

Blenheim quirked an eyebrow, Haruta making a curious hum at his side, as both brothers donned an expression of dread before jerking to scramble the hell _away_. Too bad the duo acted too little, too late.

Strawhat came rocketing out of the building like a, well, _rocket_ —the commander idly wondered if Curiel really had made good on his promise to make a human-rocket launcher for when someone badmouthed the man's "precious girls"—and plowed straight into the panicking ex-Spades. The tangle of limbs, shouted curses, and gleeful (manic) laughter arced over the fire-lit beach, and over dumbstruck partiers, to land in the sea with a spectacular splash.

Someone—he's pretty sure it was the resident Marines' Commanding Officer—yelled, "Can someone make sure the Idiot Monster Trio haven't drowned? Prefer'bly someone not sloshed, ya buncha drunkards!" Laughter met the man's words but, thankfully, Blenheim saw a couple of his more sober crewmates moving to assist those stumbling for a rowboat.

A throat clearing next to him had the large commander glancing back down at a bewildered Haruta.

"Right, so…ya know where I can find Namur?"

Tossing back the last of his drink, Blenheim responded lightly, "Nope! Know where I can find a keg?"

* * *

The morning came too early for most of the previous night's party-goers, particularly the Whitebeard Pirates. Luffy, Ace, and Sabo had been up long before any of the island's inhabitants and visiting pirates; in part to watch the sunrise and because the dragon had had another unhappy dream. (Not _bad_ unhappy, just…sad—a memory of his mother playing hide-and-seek with him as a hatchling.) The next to awaken were the village children, who immediately sought out the Trio to make good on the promise of playing with them.

After that, Marines trickled into the streets, along with the townspeople and the pirates who'd bunked in the community hall instead of heading back to the ship, to finish the last of the repairs to the various buildings. Those Whitebeards who hadn't yet apologized to the dragon for what they said prior to the Trio's disappearance did so; albeit many seriously hungover and all beating a hasty retreat after apologizing to avoid being roped into playing with the (scary) kiddy crowd accompanying the Trio.

Luffy, Ace, Sabo, and the village children moved to playing on the beach when Vista came by to visit. By the town's main road where packed earth met loose, rocky beach, Whitebeard sat with a dish of sake and watched the youngsters with a gentle smile. The dragon kept the kids away from the pirates for a bit, his brothers helping provide distractions, however the younglings were very obviously curious about the two large men. Jiru and one of the adult townsfolk wandered over just in time to see a couple of the kids breaking off from the pack and approach the two pirates. When no negative reaction came from the townsman, the Trio ceased their efforts and let the gaggle of kids bombard the two Whitebeards with questions.

Keeping an eye on the children, the brothers took the opportunity to chill on the inn's beachfront deck on the opposite side of the road from Whitebeard. Old Man Kade—"It's 'Gramps' or 'Old Man' to you whippersnappers jus' like everyone else 'round here. None o' this 'Mister' crap, ya hear? I ain't that respectable."—brought out some juice and several plates of sandwiches for the three then disappeared back inside. Luffy commandeered two plates for himself, which didn't stop his tries at stealing from Ace and Sabo, and everyone got a good laugh as the siblings stuffed themselves with their pre-lunch snack. Finishing a short time later, Ace settled in for a nap (he felt a "sleep-attack" creeping on him) while Sabo collected the dishes and took them to the kitchen. Luffy perched on the rail above Ace's slouched form, guarding his Treasure and keeping track of the village's little Treasures swarming the pirates.

Jiru waited until Sabo came back out with a fresh pitcher of juice before going over to speak with the Trio. Vista, entertaining some of the kids with some sleight of hand tricks, and Newgate, telling a story to those by him, smiled and watched the Fourteenth Commander from the corner of their eye. They paid a tad _more_ attention when they realized the lance-wielder started asking about the Trio's escape from the ship.

"So… Luffy used his Devil Fruit to steer the boat away from the ship," Jiru reiterated, gaining nods from the two younger brothers.

"I turned my arms into popellers," Luffy chirped with pride.

"It's pro-pell-lers, Lu," Sabo corrected, making his little brother sound out the word several times while smirking at the bemused commander.

"Right," the man drawled, silently promising to change his bet from Zoan Fruit to Paramecia. "Then you guys found a Sea King and 'convinced' it to tow your boat to the island." More nods.

"Except rather than 'tow', it was more 'carried'—seeing as the boat fit nicely atop his head." The commander just stared.

" _How_ did you get a giant Sea King to 'carry' you?" Vista and Whitebeard smothered their snickers at the confusion lacing the Fourteenth's plea.

"He tried to eat me! So, I hit him and bit him back," the dragon boasted. "Sabo and Ace hit him and yelled at him for trying to eat me. I hit him and yelled at him when he tried to eat Sab and Ace. Then we asked him to bring us here!" Sabo grinned at the pirate's dumbfounded look, internally laughing at Luffy's private joy in putting that expression on the other's face.

Vista was wondering just how big this Sea King the Trio bullied into service had been. The rowboat the three stole wasn't large, but it wasn't small either. And they fit it on the creature's head? It'd been cowed enough to _let them_?

Jiru decided to drop the matter of the three riding a Sea King before his head started hurting. "How did you guys get off the ship in the middle of a storm?"

"Technically, we left at the start when everyone was busy prepping," Sabo shrugged. "Figured you would be too preoccupied and anyone who might notice would be inside for the storm."

The Whitebeards knew the blond to be hinting at either Pops or Marco. "Devil Fruit users are usually tied with a safety line to the deck or, if the storm's bad enough, sent below. Less risk of them being swept off the deck and drowning," the Fourteenth explained.

Sabo glanced at his brothers, nodding. "We had a similar rule. Although, Lu still averaged three swims a day and Ace wasn't much better sometimes."

"'Cause Sabo and Ace threw me in!" Luffy retorted, stuck between wanting to scowl and laugh.

Jiru's eyes bugged, Vista's less so, and Newgate frowned minutely.

Deep blue orbs rolling in their sockets, Sabo dryly retorted, "For one, half the time you either asked, fell in, or jumped in on your own, rubber-for-brains."

"Oh yeah? What about the other half?" A snort from the freckled fire-user revealed he'd woken up.

"You were being annoying," Ace mumbled. Sabo sat down beside his older brother, a gentle light entering the blond's eyes when Ace shifted to lean against him.

Trying to ignore the two cuddling brothers, knowing that if he commented on the level of (surprising) cuteness he'd be roasted for sure, Jiru turned to Luffy. "Why would you ask your brothers to _throw_ you in the _sea_? You can't swim!" (He wanted to ask why Sabo and Ace would oblige in the first place, but… _roasting_.)

Luffy grinned and laughed. "Shishishi! 'Cause Sabo and Ace's crew would make funny faces and start shouting and waving their hands all crazy." The dragon paused, mouth making a small 'oh', then added brightly, "But they also did that whenever I saw something and tried to get it." Sabo snorted this time, an amused grin stretching his lips.

"Because that just meant you were jumping overboard to grab food. Or something possibly shiny," Sabo muttered.

Jiru shot a quick, concerned look at his brother and father-figure then looked back to the straw-hatted teen on the rail. "Um, Luffy, you do know you can't swim, right? Having eaten a Devil Fruit and all…"

Luffy, Ace, and Sabo share a private chuckle and sense of mischievous mirth at the commander's uninformed knowledge. (Not that they'll be correcting the common assumption; it's just one more advantage they can hold tight to their figurative chest.)

Instead, the dragon fledgling gives Jiru a bored look and, tone implying the older pirate must be stupid to think otherwise, answers, "Yeah."

Vista almost groans at the silent "So?" attached to the end. However, the smaller teen's answer did cause the swordsman and giant captain to crack a grin.

"And yet you still jump into the ocean?"

"Yep!"

"What for?"

"'Cause I wanted to!"

"But you just said you can't swim!"

"What's that to do with jumping?"

"Jumping into the _sea_. You can't swim and yet you _jump_ into the _sea_."

"So?"

"Does 'drowning' ring any bells?"

"Dunno, does it? Ne, Sabo, does 'drowning' ring bells? Wait, what do bells have to do with jumping into the sea and not swimming?"

Jiru gaped at Luffy's confused expression then turned a very aggrieved one of his own onto Pops and Vista; the two returned it with sympathetic smiles. Sabo and Ace busted up laughing, no longer able to hold back after seeing the Fourteenth's look of helpless confusion and mild frustration. The dragon gave his brothers a mental smug smirk over his accomplishment, complete with a vague impression of the Human next to him having question marks floating above his head. The older pair of siblings doubled-over, falling to their sides with Ace still resting against the blond, laughing their hearts out.

Lu kept up his expression of blank puzzlement towards Jiru and the Human's line of questioning, but nobody missed the happy gleam in the dragon's eyes. It got brighter as even the little kids started laughing when they noticed the funny expression Jiru sported and the looks the giant captain and big swordsman were giving the pirate.

Jiru himself was wondering if Strawhat was crazy, suicidal, or just that much an idiot. And if Pops really knew what he was getting in asking the Trio to join their crew. (Like they didn't have enough crazy idiots already! Where were the _normal_ people?)

* * *

"Those're some nasty scars ya got there, kid." Sabo pauses in his dishwashing to look behind him, blinking tiredly at what he finds.

Old Man Kade is standing at the entrance to the kitchen and looking at him. Rather, the man is staring at his left arm, currently stretched out to set the now-dry dish on the stack with the rest of its fellows. His left arm which has the white cotton sleeve rolled up to the elbow to keep the garment from being soaked in soapy water.

The arm whose skin is the canvas for a sprawling burn, the scars set in stark relief against their slightly paler background.

He bites the inside of his cheek and goes back to the few dishes still submerged in the sink. "It's fine. Happened a long time ago." He prays that the old man drops it; there's damn good _reason_ Sabo rarely wears anything but long-sleeved clothes around people.

Unfortunately, his plea goes unanswered because Kade simply shuts the door and wanders over to start putting the clean dishes away. Placing the stack of plates in one of the cupboards, the innkeeper quietly asks, "Did you get them back?"

Sabo stops again, giving the man a confused glance. Did he hear that right?

"What do you mean, sir? Get who back?" Kade makes a displeased grunt as he gets down on one knee to put a large pot away in a bottom cabinet.

"Don't play dumb, boy," he rumbles, standing back up and turning to send Sabo a reproachful glare. "Them's are serious burns and look to extend all the way to your eye. Probably more I can't see. What I want to know is if ya clocked them a good one in return."

Studying the old man, Sabo replies inquiringly, "Yellow has power over fire, how do you know these were not caused by him when he first got his Fruit?" A deep chuckle echoes from the innkeeper.

"Him? Nah," Kade shakes his head, a rueful smile touching his lips. "I'm old, not daft. Even I can tell those two rascals outside would sooner jump in the sea to drown. Y'all would before hurting each other." Sabo nods when the other looks back to him for confirmation.

The blond won't ask how or why the innkeeper thinks the scars are from a deliberate act (even though they are) and not some random, shitty accident. He's too thankful that _someone_ who's seen the burns and knows of Ace's power didn't start pointing fingers.

"So, did you or one of the other two get them back?"

A wet hand traces a deceptively delicate curl of scar near the back of his wrist, absently following the damaged skin to the limb's underside. Flashes of fire, light, and freezing darkness are chased by slightly more vivid—more worrying and disturbing—flashes of black scales and white teeth covered in blood. Of two piercing gold eyes that blazed hotter than any fire with a savage fierceness that sometimes scares him.

"Not all of them," Sabo answers slowly, visions still passing behind his eyes. "But the rest will get their due eventually. By us or another they wrong, regardless of how high they believe themselves to be."

Old Man Kade just 'hmphs' and gives a single decisive nod before going back to putting the cleaned dishes away. Sabo takes that as his cue to quickly finish his own job—he wants to be near his brothers, be comforted by the unspoken promise of their presence, after this mud-stirring and unwanted discussion.

It's a few minutes later, Sabo on the verge of easing the stiff set of the muscles in his back, that the tense quiet is broken.

"Ah! That's where the blimey thing went."

Setting the last dish on the towel by the sink, Sabo drains the water before turning to see what is the cause for the innkeeper's happy outburst.

"A planner?" It's a small stack of square-ish paper, bound together in a thin booklet, with little squares circled or filled with penned-in words.

"Close. Calendar. Wouldn't bother with the darn thing except I need to know when the next shipment from one o' the other islands is expected." Sabo 'hmms' in understanding.

It makes sense, the village is small and their only source of sustenance is the small field, any personal little gardens, the town well, and the fish living inside the reef barrier. The fish are dried and traded for supplies with the other two islands nearby, along with carefully harvested bits of coral. One of the fisherman offered to give him and his brothers some of their collected coral, telling them of its use in medicine as thanks for helping with the repairs, but Sabo had politely declined.

(He'd gotten Lu to swim out at night before flight practice, trusting his little brother to know which corals were okay to harvest pieces from. It took longer than they'd planned for, and would've gotten worried if they weren't in constant contact with their baby brother. In the end, Lu came back looking very proud as he carried a fishnet full of coral and some random things—seaglass, shells, rocks—that'd caught his eye.)

Kade is pinning the calendar back up where, he assumes, it hung before falling and getting stuck out of sight. When Sabo glances at the bold lettering of the month his heart stutters and clenches painfully.

Distantly, he's aware of the fleeting gratitude that he's not holding anything. Equally distant is the feel of wooden cabinetry at his back and his tailbone aching from where it connected with the wooden floor.

Luffy and Ace are calling to him, worry prominent over the bond. His only reply is a litany of _'Sorry, I'm so sorry, Light'_ mixed with guilt, shame, and _'I'm a horrible brother'_.

* * *

Luffy is sitting in his Ace's lap, poking the fire with a stick and playing with its smoking end after blowing it out. Ace is talking with Mango, Iz-Iz, and Mur-Mur on the other side of the fire and being fairly nice to the Humans—probably something to do with the number of cups of…ale? Rum? Whatever, nasty-smelling-liquid he's had.

Ace's arms tighten around his middle, chin resting on his head, as they listen to the three Humans tell of one of their adventures. Luffy snuggles back into his brother's chest, content in the warmth and touch of his Treasure, and smiles—small, happy, close-lipped—when Ace thrums behind him. (Not a real thrum, his brothers sound more like they're purring; but it's close enough and Luffy loves that they do it at all.)

Staring into the bonfire, the scent mixes with the sea breeze. A log crackles, sparks jumping to twist in the heated air. Bright embers dance with color, rippling between glowing white, orange, yellow, and tints of red—

 _Bright scales. Rubies. Some fading to almost-pink on the face and trailing down throat and belly. Patches of almost-purple-but-still-touched-with-red along the flanks. Red-scaled wings, membranes dappled with purple, brighter red, and yellow-orange. Ruby legs darken to deep amethyst at the paws. Horns, claws, and tail spikes like polished yellow topaz, complimenting the slightly darker mane of spun gold._

 _Glowing eyes. Light amethyst with ripples of darker, bold purples. Glittering like gems. Filled with love, life—_

A piece of logs breaks off as the fire crackles. An ember pops and flies from the bed of glowing heat to lie smoking amongst the pebbles. Cooling to reveal black edges as the charcoal smolders. The wind shifts and smoke rolls briefly over them, Ace coughing and waving his hat to quickly clear the air—

 _Amethyst dark with rage._

 _White fire streaked with blazing red. Air hot and suffocating. Black trees dancing with red, orange, yellow; reflecting off the thick, dark smoke pressing down, down, down._

 _Amethyst dark with rage and fear._

 _White-red fire. Thundering roar of challenge and defiance. Body that shines like the heart of a fire-mountain. Pattern of dotted diamonds glow blazing bright-purple on forehead, down back of neck, spine and tail, and across spread wings._

 _Amethyst dark with sorrow and love and_ sorrysorry, so sorry—

Luffy blinks. That last is too fresh, too close to be memory.

Ace is stiff behind him, worry edging his scent. Focusing on his brother, ignoring the questioning calls from the three Humans, it takes a moment before Lu realizes where the _sorrowguiltworryshame_ is coming from.

 **/( _WorryFear WhatWrong? Okay?_ ) _Sábvó_?! /**

Luffy is up and running for the inn, Ace pounding along right after him. He keeps asking what's wrong but Sabo's response is just a repeating wave of sorry's and bitter bubbles of shame.

He jumps clear over the rail of the inn/tavern's deck and darts inside, heading for an open door on the other side of the large room. There, he finds Sabo on the ground, gold hair tied back, head in his hands, legs bent and semi-stretched out in front. Luffy doesn't get the chance to growl at the Human bent down near his Treasure because they've already stood up and moved out of the way.

Another moment and he's kneeling between Sabo's legs, hands pawing (somewhat gently) at his brother's form to check for injuries. The _sorrysorrysorry_ hasn't stopped and he can't smell any blood but his Sea is emanating _pain_ and not looking at him and Luffy is _really freaking out_ because something is _wrong_ —

A hand grips his shoulder and Lu almost snarls but the desire dies at the discovery that it's just Ace—his _Sun_. His Sun should know what to do, know how to help his Sea!

He turns pleading eyes to his big brother, silently and mentally begging him to help.

* * *

Luffy's been strangely silent for a bit, Ace flicking worried peaks down at the sibling in his arms; which, in turn, also begets the Zoan's attention to the odd change.

Watching the two raven-haired teens suddenly still, Marco has one second to think, ' _What the hell?'_ before they're launching themselves across the beach. Izou lets out a startled gasp at the abrupt change in the previously relaxed brothers, but Marco's already up and racing after them. The two are surprisingly fast and the only reason nobody gets runover is because everyone is, luckily, not in the pair's path.

He doesn't summon his wings to catch up because the split-second of worry he'd seen could only be related to the absent blond of the Trio. No need to drag others' attention to something that's likely personal. (Yes, Marco's ignoring the hypocrisy of this but _something_ is obviously wrong and now he's worried, dammit!)

Marco steps through the door leading into the tavern's dining room in time to catch a glimpse of Ace bolting into the kitchen. The commander stumbles to a stop at the new room's threshold, eyes roving the room until a series of whimpers and frantic whispers draws them to the sink.

A counter lies between him and where the brothers have congregated but he can still see them on the floor next to a distraught Sabo. Luffy is running hands over Sabo's form and is the source of the distressed sounds. Listening closer, Marco can decipher the younger raven to be whispering Sabo's name over and over.

Ace is next to Mr. Kade, quietly asking the old man a couple questions and, by the frown on the freckled Fruit-user's face, not getting any answers. Sending concerned glances at the two on the floor, Kade steps further away at Ace's urging to stand next to Marco.

Kneeling to the side of the younger two, Ace places a firm hand Luffy's shoulder—the flash of tensed muscle tells the Zoan anyone other than Sabo or Ace would've been bitten at that moment—and the other on Sabo's. Fire glows and thin tendrils bloom to spread and twine around the younger pair of brothers. A gentle shake is given to the blond before Ace leans over to rest his forehead against the other's temple, mouth next to the younger's ear.

"Sabs," the older sibling whispers, "what's wrong? Why're you 'sorry'?"

A bare shake of the head is the only answer. Luffy is clutching the white sleeves covering Sabo's upper arms, an aching whimper of confused fear leaving the kid's throat.

Ace squeezes Sabo's shoulder, giving another small, but more insistent, shake. "C'mon, Waves. You're freaking Light out." And apparently Ace, too, by the sound of the teen's thready voice.

Why use a nickname and not their brother's actual name, Marco has no clue; but it does get results.

Sabo lifts his head partially out of his hands and shakily mumbles, " _Lú_?" (Marco writes off the slightly odd pronunciation as an effect the blond's current state.)

Hearing his name, a trembling Luffy moves his hands to lightly tug at his brother's own with a beseeching, tiny-sounding whine. Sabo allows them to lower and raises his head. He looks at Luffy for hardly more than a second before his arms snap out to drag the startled younger sibling against him. Ace drops the hand that had been left floating empty in the air to one of the blond's forearms, gently kneading the limb wrapped tight around the youngest's back.

Sabo is mumbling something however Marco can't pick out much other than some repeats of "sorry" from where the blond's head is buried in shaggy black hair. Ace must hear something more because he's murmuring back.

Next to Marco, Kade makes a quiet, displeased grunt and brushes past to head into the large room behind him. The old man pauses on the way out, eyeing the Zoan critically, then pushes so that the pirate's standing completely in the kitchen. Surprised, Marco turns to see the innkeeper confronting some of his fellow commanders—namely Izou, Namur, Vista, and possibly Thatch—just before the door closes.

Stunned, he blinks dumbly at the wood separating him from those outside. Then comes the slow revelation that he's now left alone with three distressed teenagers in a closed-off room. Three distressed teenagers who have mood swings to put any bi-polar nutjob to shame and a tendency to quick violence. Three distressed teenagers who are very private and _hate_ having outsiders intrude on said privacy. Three distressed teenagers who, from what he's heard, easily took down a giant Sea King in something like two minutes.

And Marco is by himself with these three in the room. _Alone_.

 _'What god have I offended to deserve this, yoi?'_ He may be the next thing to immortal but he can still feel pain, dammit! Luffy tearing into his arm is an unpleasant experience he'd _really_ prefer not to repeat, especially since now they'd be adding in Ace roasting him and Sabo contributing with those devastating punches of his.

Marco's internal monologuing is put on hold when he hears Ace grumble quietly with frustrated confusion.

"Date? What about the date?" Turning around, Marco finds the fiery teen looking for something while refusing to leave his position on the floor. Or loosening the hold on both younger siblings.

The First Commander raises an eyebrow when he notices that new tendrils of flame are gradually fanning out from the fire-user. Some are slithering—the movement is almost snake-like to Marco—across the floor and others trail up/around any abject in Ace's immediate vicinity. Marco would describe the behavior of Ace's fire to be akin to 'seeking'…but fire can't do that, right? Except Ace is mumbling something about "date" and "paper" and the fire prods each new object—mostly a couple cutting boards and a knife stand—it comes across questioningly before moving on.

Keeping what he's heard in mind, blue orbs flit about the room for something that fits the vague description. A bundle of paper tacked to a far wall, out of sight from where the brothers are huddled together, catches Marco's eye. Avoiding the threads of questing flame, Marco plucks the calendar off the wall—making note of the month it's open to: September—and brings it over to the Trio. Ace glares at him, apparently having not realized the commander's presence in the room, before flicking grey orbs to the object in Marco's hand as he reaches to take it.

And stops.

The Zoan hardly notices all the flames, excluding those twisting around the Trio, abruptly die. The commander is too absorbed in the play of emotion on the younger's features.

Ace's eyes are wide, too much passing behind them for Marco to accurately decipher. What he can read, though, is the initial shock then glint of understanding as the freckled raven's hand drops to shakily fist in the back of Luffy's vest. The rest is some unknown combination of which Marco can only pick out grief, anger, and fear—the last he's not certain about.

Marco shifts to place the calendar on the counter, hesitating when he hears a small noise of protest. Looking down, he finds Luffy staring inquiringly at the pack of paper. A short nod from Ace and the older pirate holds out the calendar for the smaller raven to peruse. Judging by the confusion in those dark eyes, Luffy either can't read the word or is unaware of the significance of whatever's caught his siblings' attention.

"It's the end of…of September, Lu," Ace whispers, barely audible and breath catching partway through.

Luffy's eyes widen, comprehension surfacing at last, then twists back around to bury himself in his brother's chest. Sabo's arms tighten, a fresh cascade of mumbled apologies being breathed into the younger's dark hair. Orange fire thickens; strands becoming ropes that circle and cling to the two's bodies. Ace sits himself properly on the floor and pulls both siblings onto his lap, big arms clad in flickering fire and holding Luffy and Sabo like he's physically trying to hold them together.

Marco's already set the calendar down and retreated to the kitchen door to give the three space. He waits for Ace to look back up and spot him, giving the teen a solemn nod before quietly slipping out the door and shutting it behind him.

Taking a deep breath, he looks around to see Kade just outside on the deck with a drink in his hand and chatting with another villager. The inn's main room is empty save for Izou, Vista, and Thatch sitting at a table in the corner. (Namur must've left to inform Pops; the giant captain wouldn't have missed Ace and Luffy's mad race to the inn.)

Throwing a glance over his shoulder, double-checking the door to be firmly shut, Marco strides over to speak with his own worried siblings.

* * *

"I can't _believe_ we're gonna miss Toadface comin' back," Ace grumbled, arms crossed and hanging upside-down by his legs from the yardarm next to the lowest crow's nest of the foremast. "The look on his face when he sees those lackeys o' his woulda been great," he added wistfully.

Straddling the same wooden beam and leaning against the side of the crow's nest, Sabo flipped a page in the book he borrowed from one of the sitting rooms. With an agreeing hum, nudging Ace's leg with a barefoot, he responded mildly /This is the better option. Light will be safer and easier to hide aboard the _Moby_ than an island that small. /

/( _Resign Unhappy Understanding_ )/ Ace huffed quietly.

"Personally, I would have enjoyed seeing Toadface's reaction to the redecoration of his office and personal quarters," Sabo said, a devious smirk touching the edge of his lips. "Also got Lu to practice his writing skills on the jerk's uniforms." Ace cackled.

 **/( _Happy_ ) _ Sábvó_ let Luffy draw on the walls!/** Luffy commented with a smile, crawling along the yardarm to dangle next to Ace.

Sabo grimaced behind his book as the freckled teen asked, "What'd you draw?"

Luffy's smile grew bigger. "Froggies! Sabo drew a frog face and Luffy copied it!"

"With mixed results," the blond murmured with a tiny shudder. The "frog faces" didn't quite resemble their namesake, closer to macabre renditions that loosely appeared to be melting faces. Very few were green, either; mostly a menagerie of red, blue, yellow, or any combination thereof when Luffy accidentally mixed the colors together. All in all, the collection of graffiti made for a disturbing image that would (hopefully) haunt the Marine bastard's consciousness for some time to come.

Ace poked his baby brother's stomach, eliciting a couple giggles followed by a whine to stop. As Luffy swung up to lay down on the wooden beam facing Sabo, the fire-user dropped his arms to let them dangle limply in the air by his head. A little bored, Ace tilted his head back a bit to better stare down at the deck below.

"What were ya talkin to the older Marines about?" Sabo flipped another page before answering Ace's question.

"Gave them a keyphrase to snap their idiotic compatriots out of their trance. Memory of those who were under the influence won't return until they see Toadface though. Kept that the same." A devious smirk accompanied the comment /( _Amusement Pride Smug_ _Glee_ ) Amazing what the wonders of hypnotism can achieve when one puts in the time and effort. Although, I suppose the level of intelligence of the target(s) might influence the degree of success./

Ace turned bland grey orbs to his younger sibling's hidden face. "You enjoy being long-winded, dontcha?" A strand of fire emerged to prod at the book's cover. /( _Affection Accusing_ ) It's 'cause of these things you're such a smartass./

Sabo lifted the book up enough to look down at Ace with a brow arched. A smile tugged at his mouth as he said, "I can always give you more reading lessons so that you may better enjoy the wonders of the literary world. Would you like them to occur before or after Lu's lessons? However, you aren't _too far_ ahead so maybe—"

Ace cut the blond off with a 'whack' to the other's chest by a larger strand of flame. It didn't do anything, the length of contact breaking off and dissipating as the rest of the thick thread continued its sweeping arc before doing the same. All Sabo felt was a brief brush of warmth across his chest where the fire touched.

"Your loss," Sabo shrugged his shoulders, smiling, and went back to his book.

Grumbling, head feeling a touch too heavy and blood beginning to pound in his ears, Ace swung himself sideways to grasp the ropes running up the mast. Relaxing and uncurling his legs, he let himself fall so he could swing over onto the rungs trailing up the giant wood pole. After he crawled into the crow's nest, checking that their hats were still there, Luffy joined him; tucking himself under Ace's left arm. Sabo plopped down on Ace's right, their sides flush with one another.

The Human-form dragon immediately shuffled across his big brother to snuggle between the two. Ace and Sabo let him get situated—one leg thrown over Sabo's left, the other over Ace's right, back snug against the older pair's chests—before changing their own positions. Each crossed their legs at the ankle so Luffy's skinnier limbs were gently trapped. Sabo wrapped his free left arm around Luffy's lower back so his hand rested just above the younger's hip, kneading the softer area between rib and hip. Ace shifted to lay his right arm over the top of Sabo's shoulders, forearm bent to let his hand card through wind-tussled sunny locks; the left curled around the front Lu's stomach, further pressing the smaller body into the older pair.

Leaning his head against the basket's side, Ace dozed off to Luffy's quiet thrumming and Sabo purring as he leant into Ace's hand while reading. When the fire-user finally fell asleep, his hand flopped down to lie limply over Sabo's chest. It wasn't much longer before the blond succumbed too, turning Ace's arm into a pillow. Luffy twisted slightly to prop his head against Ace's chest, comforted by the heartbeat echoing in his ear and the other thumping at his back. With a flick of deep brown orbs to the quiet presence a ways above, he quickly deemed the watcher a non-threat and settled down for a light doze. (Not actual sleep, though. Luffy didn't want that right now and he didn't feel comfortable with the notion of leaving his Treasures _that_ unguarded.)

* * *

Stefan sniffed at the wood floor, ears perked and swiveling anytime they caught a new sound—a footfall, voices speaking, door opening or closing, the floating wooden den creaking.

Huffing a snort, displeased with his lack of success in this hall, he raised his head to look around. He hadn't tried the tunnel that split off to the left yet, and the one that went right didn't have any of the scents he was searching for. Another glance right and he trotted down the left, nose close to the ground. At least the scents he was trying to follow weren't as old as they were in the last tunnel.

Unfortunately, Stefan found himself growing more and more frustrated as he searched. Each time he got close, found a trail newer than the others, it would disappear into a smaller tunnel up high or vanish behind a door. This latest failure was several levels down from the top where he'd started, almost at the bottom few levels.

He growled for a moment at being thwarted yet again, glaring at the door in front of him. A couple of lower packmates walking by paused and stared at him, fear and wariness growing thick in their scent. Stefan turned sharp eyes onto them and growled an order to leave him be. Predictably, the two jumped with a yelp before skirting around him to flee further down the tunnel. Once they were out of sight, Stefan shook himself, letting out a gruff sigh as he did.

None of the trails he'd followed so far were recent enough to be useful; the earliest ones, at the most, having been made around the time-before-night.

Turning away from the door, Stefan made for the lowest reaches of the giant floating den. The pup and whelps were upset—the not-human pup especially so—and he needed to check and make sure they are okay. Young pups who were upset for too long grew weak and sick.

When he got to where the pack stored what they deemed worth keeping from rival packs Stefan's mood had picked up considerably. He'd caught traces of newer scents from the three he was after here and there as he drew closer to this particular wooden cave. Thankfully, the door wasn't fully shut and, with some scratching and nudging at the barrier to widen the gap, he managed to slip inside.

The little light from the ajar door barely lit the dark space but it didn't faze the determined hound. Stefan carefully wound his way through the sprawling piles of various unknown items to where his nose said the pup and whelps' scent was strongest. Eventually, behind a large wood box, he came to a section of wood in the floor that he could smell air passing through with a metal ring attached to it.

The huge dog sat and stared in the semi-light at the square piece of floor, tilting his head in consideration. All three youngsters had good hearing, much better than most of Stefan's pack anyway. Perhaps they were close and would be able to hear if he called for them?

Scratching the edge of the wood where he smelled air passing through with a paw, he whined and gave a couple low barks. (Nothing loud, the pup and his littermates obviously didn't want any attention drawn to them.) Stefan paused and waited for several breaths before repeating the action when he got no response. He was forced to give up when another set of repetitions yielded the same result: nothing.

A growl rumbled in his throat as he sat back and stared at the wooden barrier. They were definitely down there; he could _smell_ them in the air passing through the cracks before him. Maybe they were too far away to hear him?

Yellow eyes drifted to the metal ring stuck to the piece of wood. Stefan stood up and considered what he'd seen of things with such loops. Normally, they were on doors or other vertical surfaces and he could pull and yank them open sometimes. This one was stuck to the floor but it should work the same way.

Padding closer to the metal so he could stand over it, he bent down and pulled towards him. No luck. Pulling up wasn't any better.

He dropped the loop and stared down at it in confusion. Maybe he wasn't pulling right?

Sidling around to the other side, tail brushing the side of the large box, he spread his front legs wide to either side of the ring. After grabbing it in his jaws (and ignoring the un-tasty tang of metal), Stefan braced himself to put more strength into his pulls. His endeavors proved as fruitful as the first time but he'd noticed on a tug up that one of his front paws felt a resistance that the other didn't.

Curious, he shifted that paw further from the metal ring and tried again. The dog accidentally let go of the ring in surprise when the section of wood swung up some on a pull, causing the floor-door to fall shut with a _thump_.

Tail wagging, because he was _finally_ getting somewhere, Stefan eagerly snatched up the metal and tugged. The floor-door opened towards him and he had to shuffle aside, without letting go, so that the section of wood could fall to the floor and not back on the revealed opening. It made a fairly loud bang as it hit the floor but nobody from his pack came to investigate the noise. Lucky.

Not so lucky was it being so dark inside the hole that he couldn't see beyond the first step of the ladder.

Whining low in his throat, Stefan paced in front of the hole in the floor. Too dark to jump, he could break a leg if he didn't land right. Too dark to try crawling down the stupid straight-branch-steps; it was difficult enough _with_ light and he usually opted for just jumping anyway. Frustrated, _again_ , he stopped and stared into the darkness.

Well…maybe now that the floor-door was open the pup and his littermates should hear him.

Crouching down, head hanging below the lip of the opening and eyeing the surrounding darkness with ears perked forward, he barked. The sound echoed more than he'd expected. Hopefully that would get one of the youngsters' attention. He waited and, just as he prepared to bark a second time, he heard something shuffling somewhere below—the odd echo quality made discerning its origin difficult.

He panted happily, tongue lolling and tail wagging, as a blue light then curly yellow fur came into sight.

* * *

"It's quiet…"

Namur grunted.

"It's a little _too_ quiet…"

Vista ignored his pointed look.

"It's _way_ too quiet…"

Izou glared at him for a second while polishing his pistols.

"It's—" Haruta smacked his hands down on the table and leaned in so his face was a foot.

"Shut up now or I'll stuff my sword down your throat," his smaller adopted brother growled, brandishing said weapon—sans sheath—in Thatch's face.

Gulping, Thatch raised his hands and leaned back to make space between him and his irate sibling. He waited until Haruta left the mess hall—muttering about idiots getting stabbed for being idiots—before feeling safe enough to put them back down.

"You all must think it weird too, right?" The redheaded chef waved to indicate the general area, elaborating at a quieter volume, "That nobody's seen or heard the three all morning. They should've _at_ _least_ popped up for breakfast by now."

It'd been two days since they left Monroes Island and, as annoyed as the various commanders were with Thatch that morning, they understood where the worried chef was coming from. It was almost back to how things were before the Trio jumped ship: Luffy sitting with Pops for stories, Ace attacking Pops multiple times daily, Sabo politely speaking with a few crewmen or commanders (when he wasn't reading or doodling/writing in one of those journals the teen sometimes carried), the Trio having small wrestling matches/fights that left disorder in their wake…

But for all the smiles and easiness between the rambunctious brothers, many of the Whitebeards (especially those closer to the Trio) would describe the lightheartedness as being forced. Thatch didn't think the sentiment the Trio displayed to be false, but it wasn't completely true either. The three's joviality felt strained and frayed at the edges to the Fourth, his belief only reinforced by the (worrying) abrupt shift in the siblings' behavior.

Luffy grew progressively quieter in the last two days; from loudly laughing as Stefan tackled the Trio in the canine's overly enthusiastic greeting to barely speaking last night when the boys turned up for an early dinner. Exuberant chatter and attentiveness giving way to longer and longer stretches of solemn silence and staring off into the distance. The young brunet teen also remained within physical reach of his brothers, even when playing. Those occasions, however, became brief and sporadic, then altogether nonexistent as of late morning yesterday; exchanged for Luffy practically gluing himself to either Ace or Sabo's back. Even during Pops' "story time"—for the record, Thatch didn't come up with that; Haruta did—the straw-hatted teen wouldn't budge from whichever brother's lap he'd placed himself.

(Because of their increased clinginess with one another, he'd been thrown for a loop when the three siblings came in for last evening's early dinner. Why? Ace and Sabo were suddenly keeping a minimal amount of _space_ between them and Luffy. They stayed extremely close to the small pirate, as far as the chef could tell at the time, without making physical contact the whole time!)

The other major change in the Trio's behavior related to personal space, again. All three, particularly the youngest, actively avoided large groups (four or more members) of the crew. Thatch distressingly found himself booted back to not being allowed within two yards of the brothers—plural because, as stated previously, not _once_ have any of the three left each other's side. His only consolation lay in the fact Marco was receiving the same treatment and that they were still allowed closer than his other siblings and captain. (Although, Namur might be level with him and the firebird, but the fishman possibly doesn't know or want to push his luck while the Trio are acting odd. Probably safer for Namur to wait and ask; Thatch wouldn't want Ace to turn his ship brother into fried shark.)

"It might be an anniversary or something." The subdued voice came from the Fourth Commander's side. He glanced over to see Izou polishing the barrel of his other pistol (for the second time). "Or, perhaps, we accidentally prevented them from getting somewhere by an appointed time."

"Probably a personal matter," Vista postulated, an inquiring look aimed at Izou to show it was more a question.

Izou huffed and muttered, "Wouldn't know. We've found virtually _nothing_ on those three. Even confirming the big oaf here's," Thatch scowled at the manicured thumb the other jerked at him, "suspicion the Trio _are_ that ASL bunch, we've _still_ got next to nothing."

Namur shifted in his seat before leaning forward. Voice pitched low to keep from carrying to everyone else still in the galley, he asked, "But wasn't that ASL group active before the Trio started the Spade Pirates?" Thatch and Vista were a little startled by the menacing growl that question received.

"A very rough outline of where those three were and when, not much else," was the Sixteenth's frustrated reply. "It's only been a few days since I started looking into it with Haruta, but some of the stories are either exaggerated beyond belief, simply not plausible, or use ASL as a scapegoat. So it's difficult to decipher an accurate history and I don't expect that to change much even if we spend more time trying."

"But—" Thatch looked at Izou in confusion, trying to voice the question half-formed in his mind. The Whitebeard's intelligence network was _huge_ —had to be for how widespread their territory was and their number of allies—so how could Izou and Haruta _not_ find anything out about the three ex-Spades? Sure, they had to basically start from scratch after discovering their previously collected info to be _wrong_ (and wasn't that a shocker)… But it's going on a month now that the intelligence gathering and communications divisions have been at this and they'd really gotten _nowhere_? And his brother believed they would _get_ nowhere?

Izou sighed and shook his head; Thatch stopped trying to word his question to listen. "We've been trying to piece together things based on the stories we've been told and whatever Ace and his brothers happen to mention. The problem's that very little is concrete or relevant enough to be of actual help. Most is either too vague or ridiculously outlandish," the commander explained as he flapped a hand in annoyance.

"What about their names? Dunno 'bout 'Ace' or 'Sabo', but there can't be many 'Luffy's running around," Namur rumbled. Thatch nodded his head, turning to see what Izou had to say about that.

He was surprised when Vista was the one to answer.

"Back on the island, aside from that time in the kitchen, I don't recall them ever using each other's names. Only colors." Thatch frowned, trying to think if it was the same for him. Vista continued, "None of the villagers or Marines knew them as anything other than ASL or Yellow, Blue, and Red. I'm not sure if that old man heard one of their names, considering he never called them anything but some variation of 'whippersnapper'." Izou inclined his head, eyes fixed on the table's surface.

"Aside from their old crew, I think they told virtually no one their names." Thatch and everyone looked up to see Marco plunking down on the bench next to Vista. "It's rather odd that, until the Spades formed, those three had been running about like shadows yoi."

Thatch asked, "But that means we can, _maybe_ , find something from before the ASL and Spade stuff, right?" He glanced between the other four commanders, hazel orbs bright and hopeful. "Even if you stuck those three on a mountain in the boonies, I doubt they'd remain unnoticed for very long." A twitch of Marco's lips told him the birdman thought the same.

"You think there's a reason those three have been careful up 'til now," Namur stated. Thatch frowned contemplatively, catching Marco's nod out of the corner of his eye.

"There were no pictures to go with any of ASL's bounty posters, just vague and contradicting descriptions. Sabo's bounty is fairly high, but only calls him by his moniker and last name, yoi. Luffy doesn't even have one."

A shock in and of itself after coming to know the little bundle of energy, in Thatch's opinion. An opinion readily voiced and shared by the others upon hearing Marco's recount of facts.

"There's no way Strawhat wouldn't have a bounty by now. Someone's actively keeping info on the brat on the down-low. Probably the same with Blondie, too."

 _'It is kinda weird that Sabo's wanted poster has his last name but not his first._ ' It wasn't uncommon that a pirate dropped their last name to protect family, known close friends, or some other reason. Thatch and many of his siblings left behind that part of them; he'd done so, not to protect like several others among the crew, but to start anew. With an odd name like 'Lazule', it should be conceivably easy to find something on the teen—

 _'But we haven't!'_ The chef's eyes narrowed as he thought over the implications of what Marco was telling them. Of what Izou, Haruta, and Marco's lack of findings were telling them. Hazel swept up to stare into sky-blue. "What do you think they're hiding?"

Marco shrugged and shifted into a relaxed posture—Thatch wasn't fooled; he could see the troubled glint in the blond's eyes. "Could be themselves, could be something or someone else, yoi. Right now, I don't want to search using their names if I can help it."

Vista nodded, "Better to skim the milk than dip and slosh the pail." Four pairs of eyes swiveled to stare at the swordsman.

"What," Izou deadpanned, "did you say?"

The Fifth Division Commander held up a book— _'Oh, so that's what he was doing while ignoring me. Jerk._ '—that'd apparently been present this whole time. "Just a line in a chapter I read," he smiled.

Namur cleared his throat and grumbled, "Don't let Fossa hear that. He'll twist it into something else.

"Moving on, what should we do about those three now?"

"Suppose I'll have Haruta tone down his efforts, yoi. Don't want to stir anything up and lose what little ground we've finally gained with the Trio. Unless it becomes a problem or danger to the crew, yoi, we should wait until—"

"Yes, yes, we get it, Birdy," Izou waved off the First, tone exasperated. "What our brother is referencing is the fact that the Hooligan Trio are missing. _Again_."

Marco, a brow faintly raised, scanned the room before settling on Thatch. The chef shook his head, a worried frown tugging at his face.

"Nobody's seen—"

Namur quietly interrupted Vista, "Or heard—"

"Them all morning," the Fifth Commander finished.

"I was wondering why it was so quiet, considering Ace-yoi has been giving Pops wake-up calls the last couple days."

"Least he's not sneaking into the kitchen to steal food and turn my cooks into a bunch of dogs, unlike _somebody_ ," Thatch groused. It'd happened twice already yesterday, one of the few days of the week that he wasn't on rotation for cooking or cleaning. Funny as it was for Thatch to see his brothers rolling around and barking like a bunch of hounds, he did _not_ appreciate finding Stefan rooting through one of the fridges thanks to the aid of a doggy-pirate. It was even less appreciated that the doggified cooks, upon seeing Thatch, began chasing him around the ship like he was a cat. (They only stopped after he'd located Pops and climbed to perch on the giant's shoulders, which was when Sabo waltzed over to the front of the group, snapped his gloved fingers and said, "Bark bark, woof woof." Sabo, smirking, left as Thatch gaped at his shipmates who shook themselves, looked around at those pointing and snickering, then took off to hide in a dark corner somewhere.)

"The worst I've seen Fire-Fist do is drop fireballs from the yardarms onto anyone walking by below," Namur offered. "Did tend to target those carrying things or in a hurry and I think I heard him shout something about points." Thatch grinned when he a caught Marco trying to hide a minute shiver.

They traded more quick stories about the Trio's antics, the heavy mood from earlier lightening as they continued speaking. Thatch was watching the last of the division members leave the large room and some of his own division clearing and cleaning the space when he belatedly noticed a small detail about the stories. Well, perhaps not small, considering how 'big' the detail grew as he paid more attention.

"And then Blondie—"

"What was Luffy doing?" Marco was staring—frowning, broodily glaring—at the table but the other three turned to stare at Thatch. At the blank, and slightly confused, looks, the chef explained, "Just that I usually hear people complaining or laughin' about something Luffy did, too."

"Couple of times I saw them, the fry was stuck to one of the older two and zoning out."

"Same. Only it was while I was chatting with Blondie and Ace kept trying to draw his attention every time it happened." Izou paused, then asked, "You know that he can make little figures with his flames? And have them move? He had a fish 'swimming', then there was a horse 'galloping' around, and another time I saw what looked to be a couple little birds 'flying' about."

"Huh," Thatch murmured, feeling a bit awed at the evident skill Ace had been hiding—okay, maybe not 'hiding' per se, given the "evil-faced fire orbs" some of the crew reported chasing them or scaring the shit out of them at odd hours of the night. Though, thinking about how the fire-user impersonated Marco's blue fire, he supposed he shouldn't be _too_ surprised. _'Can't be that much difference between fireballs and little fiery fish and birds._ ' He still wanted to see it, ask how the kid did it. _'Blue chicken probably does, too_ ,' he mused.

Speaking of odd-colored fowl, Thatch noticed a minute furrow forming in the blond commander's brow. "Wanna share with the rest of us what's getting your feathers fluffed?" He grinned unabashedly at the glare that received.

"You have been quiet for a while now," Vista said placatingly. Blue eyes flicked to the large swordsman before settling on the interested faces of the rest of their group.

"They're in hiding," Marco huffed as he sat up straighter.

"You sure?" Thatch noted a hint of relief in Namur's tone, the fishman's crossed arms on the table noticeably less tense.

Marco nodded, gaze a touch distant. "I can't sense Luffy, so I'm assuming he's asleep yoi. Or he's just better at hiding than Ace and Sabo. The other two are…difficult, but I believe they're somewhere in the ship's lower decks."

 _'I'm_ so _upping my bet on them being trained in haki,_ ' Thatch decided. Judging by the looks on his brothers' faces, they were having similar thoughts.

"And they haven't come up for breakfast. The big oaf here says Strawhat didn't eat much last night either," Izou brought back up, voice shaded with wariness and concern.

Thatch grimaced, "An early dinner to boot. Plates were completely cleaned but that was more Ace and Sabo's doing. Luffy spent more time picking at his food. They all ate slower, too."

What neither of the two commanders said was that things were eerily reflecting the pattern shown before the Trio bailed.

"Suppose this means setting a watch on the boats?" Namur inquired gruffly. Thatch thought the question more rhetorical than anything.

" _Gah! Bad Stefan, bad dog!_ "

The shout was followed by many more disgruntled and dismayed voices, along with some banging of pots and/or pans being knocked over. As one, the group of commanders turned to stare at the serving area, trying to see passed it and into the kitchen.

" _No! What're ya doin'?! Tha's Thatch's jerky!_ "

Said chef went stock still, eyes widening and mouth slowly opening to gape in dawning horror. Izou sniggered something but he didn't pay his brother any mind.

Lunging out of his seat, he raced for the kitchen with a roar of, "NOT MY _JERKY_ , YOU _MUTT_!"

* * *

Ace wakes up to the soft glow of a lantern—shadows flickering and swaying at its boundary above him—and the rasp of pen against paper. Sabo's _ki_ is near-absent, but the pressure of his younger brother's back against his hip affirms the other's location. (It also reminds Ace to hide his own _ki_ signature.) The scent of dog has him twisting his head to the side to see Stefan has rejoined them; the huge canine lying curled up on Sabo's other side and staring into the darkness behind the two brothers.

"Five minutes," Sabo mumbles.

He gives a noncommittal hum, head tilting back to gaze, upside-down, beyond the lanternlight's reaches behind them. Ace's body feels unnaturally heavy—something not tired or weary or anything like that (though he feels those too). Just…heavy. Almost like those attacks where it simply shuts down, paralyzed in a semblance of sleep but his mind's still aware. (Ace generally prefers the dubbed "sleep-attacks" to those any day. Full-body paralysis is _not_ fucking cool and it always grates against his nerves. At least when he falls unconscious it doesn't feel like any time has passed.)

Fire—his own, not the lantern's little candle—branches from where he and Sabo are touching to twine around his sibling, giving him some relief from the phantom pressure. It takes only a bit of concentration to sense the difference between skin, cloth, hair; to feel how the thin flames wrap around Sabo's chest and arms and sense their movement with each breath and motion. It's comforting how his fire sees/acknowledges the younger as an extension of its Master.

The sensation is grounding and fortifying, enabling Ace the strength to create a small Wisp and commanding it to drift away through the dark.

/( _Reassurance Understanding AffectionLove_ )/ "He's still there," his little brother whispers, though Ace doesn't remove his eyes from the receding ball of fire.

Ace knows that, Sabo wouldn't be so calm if that weren't the case. However, Sabo also knows that he will still check anyway because words can only do so much right now.

Finally, the blue orb illuminates Luffy's dark mass. Its reflection shimmers and ripples over the glassy black scales as the dragon takes slow, shallow breaths. Horns glint and almost sparkle with the waving firelight, catching and refracting the fire like they were made of polished crystal. The ebony mane fairly glows in the play of light; dark, silken strands appearing threaded with azure radiance. Ace would find the sight beautifully ethereal and enchanting at any other time.

As it stands, seeing his baby brother curled up tight, body lax with apathy, space between breaths uncomfortably long, eyes marginal slits of dull, glazed gold… It hurts. It's a physical weight in his chest; a tight sharpness in his stomach; a throbbing pain that chisels ribs with each heartbeat.

Ace hates the end of September. He hates their Light— _his_ bright, cheerful, loving, forgiving, happy Light—looking the definition of defeat. He hates that every year he and Sabo are forced to break their promise. He hates how he's too weak— _useless_ —to help when it matters!

A gloveless hand settles on his knee, gently squeezing the joint. /( _Understanding Sorrow…anger… Affection Notyourfault Eat?_ )/

The Wisp dispels, casting his baby brother back into the pitch black, as Ace heaves himself into a sitting position. Sabo's hand doesn't leave his knee until he scoots closer, erasing the distance created from Ace sitting up. After reaching around to scratch behind Stefan's ear, earning a small tail-wag from the dog, he lays his head on Sabo's shoulder.

/( _HungryEat?_ )/

One hand lazily fiddling the edge of his brother's coat, Ace ignores the inquiry. Instead, eyeing the content of the page in the younger's lap, he dully decrees, "'S depressing. Make somethin' else." The shoulder under him rises and drops with a low huff but Sabo doesn't deny the comment's accuracy.

It's a picture of Lu—more a basic sketch thanks to the lack of detail—in his dragon form, laying down similar to how he is right now. The difference lies in how the dragon's curled around two large and brightly glowing candles (one marked with an 'A' and the other an 'S'), but the head and neck are angled away from them. The drawn Luffy is completely focused on another candle—unmarked and unlit, even bigger than his and Sabo's candles, snuffed out with the thinnest trail of smoke above it—at the edge of the page.

"Will if you eat," Sabo mumbles, adding a date at the corner of the page.

Ace groans and buries his face in the dark fabric of the coat, replying a muffled, "Not hungry." Knuckles gently rap once against the side of his head.

"Stefan was kind enough to bring us somethin' to eat. It would be rude to snub his offer."

"Ate some earl'er, 'member? S' m'nah rude, ya poli' jerk."

"Stop speaking into my shoulder. Eat some jerky and give me ideas if you want a different picture."

/( _Nothungry_ )/ Ace insists, pressing his brow a little firmer into the cloth-covered bony muscle beneath it. _'Waves needs to bulk up more_ ,' he decides. _'Add more padding._ '

"Ace."

"No."

"Please?"

 _'That's not fair,_ ' he whines dismally. The volume and tone hadn't changed, however it still sounded too close to being a wretchedly pitiful plea— And Sabo doesn't beg.

Ace has no clue _how_ the blond does it, but that word held strong hints of worry, anxiousness, hope, and demand. At the very periphery, there was a mild sense of Sabo almost-desperately begging— _pleading_ —through that single word without it strictly showing up. Because Sabo. Doesn't. _Beg_.

Heaving a sigh, Ace nods and lifts his head, muttering, "Fine, fine. Just don't do _that_. It sounds weird coming from you." He nearly growls when the jerk smirks and pats his head like a dog, exuding a bubble of gratitude.

Scowling, he opens his mouth to object to the treatment and immediately gets a large chunk of jerky shoved in it for the effort. Sabo's smirk turns to a toothy grin that has Ace diligently chewing his food and reaching for another piece. (Not that he needs the silent threat. With the first piece swallowed, it seems his stomach is remembering how hungry it is.)

Ace tosses a piece to Stefan as Sabo turns to a blank page, right hand twirling the fountain pen nimbly around its digits. The action stops when he holds a chunk of treated, spiced meat up right in front of his brother's face.

/( _?_ )/

Rolling grey eyes, Ace answers /( _Hypocrite Insistence_ )/ (If he's being forced to eat then he sees no reason his brother should be exempt either!)

"Thanks," Sabo says and plucks the dried food from Ace, daintily chewing on it.

Ace drags the sack of jerky closer, selecting another piece to munch on before going back to leaning against his brother's side. He increases the heat of the fiery tendrils wrapped around Sabo. Even with the dog lying next to him, Sabo had to have gotten somewhat chilly in the short period Ace'd been unconscious. He's proven correct when Sabo snuggles into the warmth, the blond purring as he does so.

Ace smiles in pleased accomplishment, mood lifting a tad. He turns to eye the inkless page open on Sabo's lap. /( _Curious Whatmake?_ )/

/( _Unsure Don'tknow AceSuggest?_ )/

Ace snorts. /( _Amusement SaboImaginationpoor_ )/ He chuckles at the light elbow jab that earns him, Sabo mumbling under his breath as he reaches for new piece of jerky.

/Am a realist. Unlike some air-headed arses we know./

/Waves thinks too much. ( _Amusement_ ) Should take after your name and go with the flow!/ Ace sniggers at his stupid joke, laughing a bit harder when Sabo shoves him over in retaliation. It's fine though because Sabo has a soft smile on his face and Ace only senses fondness towards the familiar banter. (Much better than the _painworryuseless_ they're both feeling right now.)

Stefan getting up distracts them both, watching the dog stretch and shake himself before circling around to deliver a slobbery lick to the face each. They grumble, wiping away the stinky wetness, but still bestow a good ear scratch (and Ace complains anew when his reward is a huge tongue spreading drool over half his arm). The dog takes a mouthful of jerky from the stolen sack before turning to trot away. Ace quickly makes a Wisp to follow so Stefan can find his way easier; it has enough power to sit by the hatch for a while if Stefan decides to come back.

"Bathroom probably," his brother comments. "Or he's hungry for something other than jerky."

"Think he ate more of it than us," Ace shrugs, glancing down at the mentioned bag. There's not much left, especially compared to when the white-furred canine first brought it down. _'I'm still curious about why he seemed so smug. Who'd he steal from?'_ (And it better be stolen and not some super-fancy _dog food_ or he'll singe that mutt's furry ass!)

A bit of jerky hits his head. /( _Curious Madwhy?_ )/

"What're the chances of Stefan feeding us dog treats?"

"Pfft! Hahaha!" Ace ignores the laughter and the I-can't-believe-that's-what-you're-thinking waves emanating across their bond. After Sabo gets himself under control, he continues, "Stefan is smart enough, I believe, to know we do not eat _dog food_. If it makes you feel better, I'm fairly certain that this," Sabo motions to the stolen merchandise, "belonged to one of the commanders. Heard a couple of them are very fond of jerky and that Thatch keeps some hidden away for himself."

Ace puffs a sigh of relief, pointedly ignoring the pings of amusement stemming from his younger sibling. Carefully listening for Luffy's breathing under the creaking of the ship, he blankly watches Sabo chew the stolen food and twirl the stupid pen around in his hand.

Maybe he should ask how long it's been? How long they might still have to go? The chances that their Light might—

But no, he can't think that. What if Sabo picks up on those thoughts? It would only make the younger worry and fret and focus on those fears more than he already is. Ace may only be some months older than Sabo but that still makes _him_ the eldest. It makes _him_ the one responsible for taking care of their tiny, precious, kinda-broken-but-kinda-not family.

So Ace endeavors to keep himself away from all that and concentrate on Luffy eventually waking from this yearly self-imposed mental withdrawal. Of their little Luffy returning to normal and smiling and being a happy chatter-bug.

Except, he's cruelly reminded that's not what happens after Light immediately wakes up when he steals another glance behind him. Before Lu returns to his usual self, their dragon will seek promises Ace and Sabo can't (in good conscience) make and yet always do. Is reminded of how that makes him feel, which then dredges up and thrusts Ace back to how horrible he is for ever forgetting this anniversary.

/( _Concern Whatthinking?_ )/ Sabo's inquiry jolts Ace from staring into nothing.

He blinks, takes a couple breaths, and considers just voicing the creeping question he hasn't dared ask in the time he's known Luffy. He's been too afraid of the answer. However, it's festered for so long that, right now, his exhaustion slightly trumps the fear and he just needs to _know_.

"Am I…" Ace mumbles, images of shiny amber eyes desperately locked on his own and filled with endless pleading and soul-consuming need passing through his mind.

Sabo is quiet next to him, the pen's motions not slowing but the mild tilt of a blond head signifies complete attention.

"Am-am I a terrible brother," Ace asks, voice quiet and heavy with each leaden word, "for liking it when _Lú_ looks at me like—When he _asks_ and I feel so—" He pauses, takes a deep breath that shudders on the exhale. "Am I a terrible brother for feeling happy every time Light begs us to make that promise?"

Silence meets his question, Sabo going stiff and pen no longer weaving through deft fingers.

Ace promptly regrets asking, regrets giving in and voicing his fear. He regrets giving the thoughts substance by saying them aloud and dreads what Sabo might think of him now, might say in response. There was no point to that question; he already knew the answer and Sabo confirming it would merely serve to tear the hole wider and bury the knife deeper.

Because what kind of person, except a complete fucking bastard, feels happy when another (who is so very precious to them) is heartbroken? Why do sparkling golden eyes practically bleeding with sorrow and heartache make Ace, underneath his own grief and gut-clenching anguish, feel heart-flutteringly light? That cannot be okay. That must be a terrible thing that only somebody horrible would experience. Right?

"I," Ace tenses up at his brother's somber voice after the weighted silence, but Sabo just flips back several pages in his drawing book, "like it when Lu steals my hat so I have to go chase him." Sabo points out a small doodle of him chasing Luffy, then another of their youngest holding a sleeve and looking somewhat abashed. "Or he accidentally rips my clothes because he got a little too excited." More pages turn and Sabo settles on another series of doodles that have the three of them fighting or wrestling. "I like it when he makes me mad by doing something stupid. I like it when he clings to me in his sleep even if I get too warm." Another set of pages are flipped and Ace sees a carefully drawn picture where they're all smiling.

"I like it when Luffy pouts because I stole his food. Or he gets upset because I'm ignoring him. I like seeing Luffy become angry because someone insulted me." Sabo gently traces a finger along the lines of their baby brother's drawn face, a shadow of a smile on the blond's own. "And I like it when he is teary-eyed and begging me to make promises that I have no way of realistically keeping but still make them anyway," Sabo says, tone gentle with a hint of bitterness in its fond aftertaste.

Throughout his sibling's speech, the tension has progressively faded from Ace's body until he's a limp weed against Sabo's side once more. Ripples of understanding and acceptance float between them, tangible thanks to the gift of the _ȧzdá_. A pressure against the top of his head, soft with a suggestion of hardness that tells Ace it's Sabo's cheek resting there, precedes a wave of assurance from the blond.

Sabo states very matter-of-factly, "If _Atce_ is a terrible brother, then I am just as bad." _And I don't care_ is left off but Ace hears it anyway and smiles gratefully that his Treasure also answered the other question he couldn't scrounge up the courage to voice.

Flames wrap tighter around Sabo in gratitude even as their wielder faux-gripes, "You really like the sound of your voice, huh?" A pen-flick to the forehead is his reward and Sabo grumbling about "ungrateful brothers". The complaint is empty though and, oppressing atmosphere lifting, Sabo has a small smile like the one growing on Ace's face.

Shuffling back to the blank page he'd left before the 'pep-talk', Sabo returns to staring at it. Ace idly watches the pen resume flipping and twisting around Sabo's hand, belatedly recalling his earlier comments and request. Thankfully, with talk of Luffy and seeing those previous pictures and doodles (plus a need to further ease the remaining tightness in Sabo's features), Ace has come up with an idea.

"Ne, Waves."

/( _?_ )/

 _'And he calls_ me _lazy_ ,' Ace grouses. "What about those images _Lú_ showed us of the reef? That huge green coral looked like it was _glowing_." Sabo stops spinning the pen around, dark blue orbs blinking in surprise at the blank pages open before him.

"Huh. Don't think I've really drawn those yet," his brother mumbles absently. "Can sketch them out now and redo them in color later, I suppose. Or…"

Ace moves around to lean against Sabo's back, facing the darkness Lu is currently hidden away in, as the blond continues muttering to himself. Clinking of the fountain pen against its inkwell is followed by the rasp of the metal tip against paper, a murmured word occasionally joining in as Sabo quiets. It's distracting in a comforting way; lulling the lingering negativity in Ace enough that he isn't oppressed by the swirling mass still lodged in his gut and chest.

Creating a few Wisps and having them roam the shadowed space, he practices sensing through them to further distract himself.

* * *

After a quick visit to one of the designated spots Stefan was to use for relieving himself, the dog made a couple rounds of the floating den's upper levels. Then he stopped by to check-in with his alpha—much as Stefan wanted to stay with the unhappy whelps he _did_ have duties required of him—and sat with the man for a bit until one of the females came and sent him off for a nap.

Stefan escorted his human to the man's personal den, making sure to warn away those who tried to stall them along the route. The too-clean smelling female ordered that Alpha rest and the females of this pack were charged with managing the pack's (and especially the alpha's) health. Stefan was also responsible for protecting Alpha, therefore he needed to make sure the man listened and did as told. (The females weren't to be disobeyed either in cases like this. Stefan didn't want to face the wrath of their blue-furred leader.)

The dog sat down by the door, left open just a crack so he could leave when he wanted—and dissuade anyone from entering. His alpha patted him on the head before going over to sit on the bed and take his "shoes" off. Just as the giant man was laying down on the bed, he sighed.

The worry trickling into the human's scent had Stefan padding over to stand by the bed. The dog made a low whine of concern and question to get the other's attention. A large hand lifted to gently stroke the white fur on his head and Stefan leaned into the touch happily.

"It's okay, boy. I'm fine."

The tone was reassuring and Stefan relaxed some, though he wasn't completely appeased. There was still _worryconcern_ in his human's scent. The canine showed this by sitting down and issuing a second small whine.

"Just concerned about the three rambunctious brats. We're having trouble finding them to see if they're okay. It's late afternoon and no one's reported having seen them since last evening." Stefan cocked his head, wondering who his leader was talking about.

The hand on hound's head paused its motions as its owner looked at Stefan inquiringly. A lighter scent began to join the fold of _worryconcern_ , one that was similar to _happy_. "You've also been gone much of the day, even running off with Thatch's prized stash of jerky. And that you bit him."

Recognizing the name, Stefan growled in displeasure. His tail, however, wagged lightly at the memory of this late morning. He'd tried to get some meat for the whelps and pup to cheer them up but couldn't get into where it was stored. Instead, he went for the stash of nice-smelling dried meat he knew to be hidden in the back of the food-storing cave. Stefan almost got away with his acquired prize but one of the other food-makers had spotted him and alerted the stolen goods' owner. The dog _was_ going to escape peacefully, but Thatch had called him something insulting—what it was, Stefan didn't know; he'd merely recognized the tone it was said in—and made sure to punish the human for it. Nothing _too_ harmful and he didn't draw any blood; just knocked the man over, tore off the back of the human's lower-body coverings (both sets), then, tail held high, purposely walked on him on the way out.

His alpha chuckled (loudly), so Stefan knew he wasn't in trouble. "Also heard you've been making off with other bits of food and a couple of your toys." The hound's tail ceased wagging and he looked at the man in curiosity at the slight shift in tone. "I don't suppose you happen to know where those cheeky brats are?"

Oh! Stefan knew _that_ tone, Alpha was talking about the pup and his littermates! His tail wagged again, a touch faster than before. Nothing was wrong with his leader after all, the man (like any good pack leader) was worried about the young not-yet-pack pack.

The dog woofed to confirm he was, in fact, looking after the youngsters. The message was obviously received because Stefan happily noted some of the _worryconcern_ left the human's scent.

"Gurarara! At least someone's keeping an eye on them," the human laughed, giving Stefan a good scratching of his scruff. The hand gave his head a couple light pats before Alpha smiled and said, "I'll leave it up to you, then." Stefan woofed again.

Alpha chuckled, ruffled the fur atop Stefan's head, then laid back on the bed. The large canine waited until the human was asleep before he slipped out of the room, using the short length of cord attached to the door's metal lever to shut it.

Stefan considered going back to the whelps immediately but discarded the notion. Instead, he made for the area where the higher-rank pack members slept. The heavily scented one with long, flowy body-coverings often had a stash of sweet-smelling tidbits—the kind Stefan was expressly ordered to _never_ eat—hidden away. (So did several other of pack who slept there, like the flowery-smelling and speedy humans; Stefan just didn't want to spend time _looking_ when he already had a location for what he wanted.)

* * *

Luffy woke—or more aptly, given that he hadn't been _sleeping_ , blinked in slowly dawning awareness at the lightless space around him. The usual split-second of worry and fear slammed him when he didn't immediately _see_ his Treasures, but it was just as quickly brushed away when their scents at last reached his brain. Then he heard them breathing and their hearts beating—slow, steady, rhythmic, _near_ —and relaxed in relief, black head twisting to stare in the two's direction.

A voice, soft and warm as a summer wind through one's mane even while it boomed like quiet thunder, echoed from within Luffy's memories. He choked on a whimper, insides cold and numb and too close to _empty_.

Tamping down on the _sorrowhurtpaingrief!angerlonely_ still constricting his heart (though far more manageable now), Luffy rose just enough to get his belly off the ground and slunk over to his precious _rvýsoré_. Neither stirred until he carefully nudged them closer together, less in a sprawl of limbs, so that he could curl around them (without accidentally laying on an arm or leg).

Fire wavered into existence as two concerned and inquiring minds brushed Luffy's consciousness, their owners tiredly propping themselves up. The dragon whined, releasing a small sense of the need for comfort through the stranglehold he had on their bond. (Lu couldn't afford to drop it quite yet. Fighting against the instinct to meld with his brothers to relieve some of his anguish, although extremely difficult, was easier to stomach than what would happen if he _didn't_.)

"Hey, hey, _jól'tés Lú_ ," Ace murmured, patting the scaled hide closest to him: Luffy's shoulder. Warmth spread from the point of contact, his brother's fire gracefully enveloping him in a thin, net-like blanket.

Sabo stroked his flank beneath the rippling flame, each pass firm enough for Luffy to feel through the scales. "S'okay, Light, we're righ' here, see?"

Luffy didn't answer verbally, _couldn't_ make the proper sounds or work his voice through the too-tight strain of his throat. Instead he keened, the plaintive sound low and raspy and choked with tears that would never show (not in this form). Leaning into his brother's touches, mindful of his horns, Lu used his head to push the two further into his side. He _needed_ them close; _needed_ to feel their warmth just as much as their touch and presence; _needed_ to hear their breaths and hearts right next to his. He needed to _physically_ _feel_ they were here, with him and alive, not just _know_ it.

( _Okýsui_ sometimes— _too many times_ —seemed to breathe or move, not _gone_ for one, single, tiny instant. Desperate hope would drag him away from the bottomless abyss; one instant of desperate joy— _desperate denial_ —to kindle a roaring desire. A tiny momentary instant, fleeting in length, before truth would collide hard and fast; striking him from the sky to fall into never-ending nightmare's abyss, to crumble and break under the weight of his hellish new reality— _over and over and over!_ )

Ace and Sabo moved immediately, both crooning and whispering gently to him as they lifted his wing to fall over them and wrapped his tail about their waists. Luffy crowded close as he could; the scaly mass a tight curl around the two precious Treasures bundled together against his warm side. Head propped on the coils of his tail, Luffy felt Sabo lean over to encircle his arms around Luffy's neck and give it a light squeeze. Ace did the same to Lu's head, being mindful to not block the dragon's nostrils even as he held the dark head tight to his chest.

Luffy's brothers stroked him lovingly and continued their croons and thrums of comfort. It didn't register that he was still whimpering and making low, wailing cries until he heard quiet murmurs of "we've got you" and "we're here, _Lú_ ". He tried to keep it down, tried to stop, but couldn't manage more than lowering the volume. Luffy let Ace and Sabo know he'd at least heard them and was aware of their efforts by cinching his tail a little tighter around them.

Gradually, head wrapped in his Treasures' embrace, feeling, hearing, smelling the undeniable proof he _was not alone_ , Luffy's keening faded into silence as he succumbed to sleep.

* * *

Ace crept about cautiously as he made for the nearest restrooms to their hiding place below. 'Cautious' because: one, for whatever reason none of the stupid pirates had thus far discovered their reclusive retreat; two, they needed to _keep_ said retreat a secret; three, he really needed to take a piss (then get back to his siblings quickly) and didn't want to be waylaid by anyone. (For now he wasn't overly concerned about having a narcoleptic attack as he'd already suffered one not too long ago. However, he kept an eye on possible escapes, just in case; Ace's luck wasn't at Lu's level, but he wouldn't claim surprise if his narcolepsy acted up just to spite his ass.) As it happens, Ace found himself fortunate enough to not encounter anyone on his way to the toilet.

Not so fortunately, his crappy luck kicked in on the way out.

 _'Shit_ ,' Ace mentally kicked himself. Of course he would run into someone the moment he lost focus on his surroundings. Why not? That or he'd slipped on suppressing his _kí_ presence. Either was an option with how tired he currently was.

Arms folded across his chest and staring up at the man before him, Ace accused, "You always creep outside'a bathrooms?"

Placid look never leaving his face, Marco replied, "Was coming up from checking on the orlop deck when I noticed you, yoi. Came over to see what you were up to."

"Stalker's same as creeper," the teen blandly stated. He almost smirked at the slight brow twitch that earned him. "Why ya stalkin' me?" That time he did smirk at a second, more pronounced, brow twitch.

/( _?_ )/

/( _Blue and yellow fire-that-doesn't-burn_ )/ Ace answered his brother with a vague visual impression, absently listening to Marco.

"I'm not 'stalking' you, I just happened to be nearby when I sensed you." Marco hooked his thumbs into the sash holding his pants up. "And I already told you why: to see what you were doing."

Ace took in the posture of nonchalance, not buying it for a second; the other was eyeing him too closely. It reminded him of Sabo discretely observing someone for hints of weakness—exploitable flaws. Marco's eyes weren't as sharp in their examination, but it still left Ace defensive.

"Congratulations, creeper bird," Ace sarcastically drawled. Tilting his hat down, without blocking his view of the taller man, he then hooked a thumb at the door behind him. "I took a piss. There you go, mystery fucking solved." With that, the teen turned and walked off down the hall in clear dismissal of the older pirate.

A dismissal the other either ignored or didn't get, because after a second the bastard began following him. Ace kept his course for the intersection several paces away.

/( _Concern Whatwrong?_ )/

/( _AngerIrritation Blue and yellow fire-that-doesn't-burn following Annoying!_)/

/( _Amusement Understanding_ )/ Ace rolled his eyes at Sabo's reply and muttered inaudibly, shoulders itching from the stare being leveled at his back. /( _Becareful Restraint!_ )/

The brunet snapped back a reply, though he made no promises about not setting something on fire. Fond but weary amusement came from Sabo before Ace returned his attention to the shadowing Zoan. Fire flickering across his shoulders, Ace stomped to a stop at the hall's intersection and turned a glare onto the man behind him.

Scowling, Ace growled, "Quit fuckin' stalkin' me, ya damn creeper bird!"

Standing a couple yards back and still in that fake relaxed stance, still quietly observing him, Marco's face pinched into a (very) mild look of distaste. "Please stop saying that yoi."

"Well, if the feather fits…" The teen counted the resulting groan at his pun a victory, grinning toothily as the blond pirate dragged a hand down his face.

"Damn hells, I get enough of this from Thatch," Marco lamented long-sufferingly. "Look," he began, hand dropping to hang by his side, "I wasn't—and am not—stalking you, brat!"

Ace gave Marco a very pointed look, gaze lifting to glance behind the man to where the restroom door was, then settling back on Marco. Tone flat but overflowing with blatant skepticism, he drawled, "Really?" Silently, Ace debated whether to tack on 'So, you just follow every person you happen to smell?' (He did, just to see the guy twitch.)

Doing his best not to react outwardly, Ace listened to Marco defend himself. First, the commander clarifying that he said he had "'sensed' not 'scented'" Ace. Then, Marco moved onto declaring that yes, it truly was a coincidence he'd been in the same relative area as Ace while resolutely denying the accusation of any subsequent "stalking". Tired, grumpy, and wanting to drive the older pirate away, Ace maintained an unimpressed expression as he goaded the man on. (Admittedly, Ace had a talent for it which was polished through many an argument with his siblings. Riling the Zoan also provided him both amusement and an outlet after the last shitty couple of days.)

Trying to hide a yawn, the freckled brunet was surprised when Marco paused in his defensive tirade and took a deep breath, held it for a second, then let slowly let it out. "Look, Ace," the blond started, voice low and tone patient, "is there something going on? Something you three need help with, yoi?"

The growing smirk of humor dropped in favor of a (hopefully) more neutral expression. Stiffly, trying to keep the wary unease from leaching into his voice, Ace replied, "Nothin's up. Why do ya think—"

"Nobody's seen you three in almost two days," Marco abruptly cut in, tone demanding the younger pirate shut-up and listen. "You and Sabo were snappish and distracted. Luffy was withdrawing into himself, not eating much again, yoi, and I got the impression he'd have a fit if either of you two left him for a minute."

Ace grew tenser as the man spoke, hands fisting defensively where they rested in his folded arms. Blue orbs watched him closely and what Marco said next had the teen's eyes widening in shock.

"Before all this, Sabo was having a breakdown in a kitchen over something to do with the 'end of September'." The commander paused, bright eyes critically examining Ace and the younger tensed, distinctly uncomfortable under the intense scrutiny. "So, when you finally show yourself, looking like shit and as if you haven't slept at all… What else am I supposed to think, yoi?"

The ring of authority in Marco's voice clearly told Ace an answer was desired; however, the teen was stymied. Torn between kicking himself for forgetting Marco's presence that night at the inn—how much the man had _seen_ and possibly _overheard_ —and deciphering what the rest of what the commander said meant. Asking the about the former would just draw unwanted attention to the occurrence, something he was resistant towards out-of-hand (in spite of the lure of answers). Likewise, Ace struggled with what he was seeing of Marco in conjunction with the man's questions.

Stiffly, staring down at the seam where wall met floor from under his hat's brim, Ace said, "Whatever you people want, not that it's any of your business." He tried for nonchalance, but the last came out as a growl. Ace could feel his meager energy fraying like his patience and hoped Marco took the warning to back off.

When Marco said nothing, just continued to silently watch him, Ace turned to leave (choosing a different direction than the one he needed). He didn't even get three steps.

"That didn't answer my question, yoi." Frustrated, Ace refused to stomp his foot like an angry child, though he did groan lowly through clenched teeth.

Without looking back, he groused, "Sure it did." It was an answer to the least confusing question. The one that required the least thought.

"I didn't tell anyone." Ace unconsciously stopped, feet rooted to the ground in surprise that quickly twisted into stark disbelief.

"Bullshit," he snapped, eyes locked on the hall ahead, remembering the looks some of the other commanders and Captain Bastardbeard were giving them recently.

/( _Concern Okay?_ )/

"Besides Pops, I didn't and haven't said anything to anyone who wasn't there, yoi." Ace peered over his shoulder, keeping most of his expression hidden under the safety of his hat. Bright blue eyes tried to meet his, looking as sure, confident, and determined as the man sounded. "Even then, I didn't tell them more than that you three seemed," Marco paused, either to make up something or to find a word that wouldn't ignite Ace's temper.

/( _?_ )/

/( _FineOkay_ )/ he assured Sabo, trying to hide his current unease to keep his younger brother from worrying (and probably failing).

The older pirate sighed, barely audible but Ace caught it, and finished, "I said, to Pops, Thatch, Namur, Vista, and Izou, you seemed concerned after finding out the date that day."

The teen scowled harder, gaze flickering over Marco without ever connecting with the man's own observant stare. He wished he had Lu's gift for sensing and scenting emotions, or Sabo's knack for reading others' body language. Ace just had his temper, suspicion, and threat of roasting/punching going for him. (And apparent inability to remember important fucking anniversaries, let's not forget that!)

Warmth licked up Ace's arms, a direct counterpoint to the doubt creeping over him. "You expect me to believe that shit?"

Marco shrugged and the blue gaze lost some of its intensity. "I don't expect anything. Just told you what I told them, yoi."

'Why?' the teen wanted to ask. Why would this person, who'd seen such a huge moment of weakness, share so little detail with those they answered to? What did Marco have to gain from holding onto that information? Ace felt certain they'd given nothing absolutely major away; nothing that'd make sense anyway unless you _knew_. Though, if used right or if it was slipped to the wrong people…

Some of his thoughts probably bled through because Ace's focus was dragged back to Marco when the man said, "I really only told them that, Ace. It was a private moment between you and your brothers and I figured you'd want it to stay that way."

"Whatever," Ace muttered, looking away from the suddenly searching glimmer in the blond's eyes. Perhaps it's weariness filling his bones, weighting him down like he was in the sea just outside these wooden walls. Perhaps it's his _Lú_ 's opinion about the Zoan—which may or may not be influenced by the general buddy-buddy relationship between Phoenixes and Drakkón Ace gets the impression of every time Luffy tells them a story about the Earth Kings—and the First Commander's actions to date. Whichever was the culprit, Ace felt his energy already meager energy flagging and decided not to push the stupid subject. (It's _not_ because he's trusting the stupid bastard's word or anything. No way in fucking hell is that the case!)

"How—why is it…?" Confused, Ace glanced over to see what the commander's on about.

Marco was watching something, blue orbs aimed in Ace's direction but not fixated on the teen himself, with single-minded focus. Ace wanted to pinch himself once he noticed the expression of blatant curiosity and…wonder? Interest? In the guy's face. Which was growing and becoming more obvious than anything he's seen crossing the other's features thus far—not by much, granted, but this was the guy with the look of perpetual boredom standing before Ace.

When the scrutiny didn't show signs of stopping, Ace grew defensive. Heat licked around his legs, something he only noticed thanks to the blond's eyes darting to look. "What?" he growled.

Marco's gaze flicked up to meet Ace's grey, one eyebrow arched in question, then pointedly looked at the grouchy teen's arms. That was when Ace finally became aware of his flames trying to placate him with their warmth. The tops of his arms were lightly dappled with soothing orange and purple; his legs wrapped in brighter orange and yellow that fanned out and waved warningly at whomever was upsetting their Master.

"Fuck," Ace breathed, head falling forward to rest in a raised hand. He must be more tired—exhausteder? If it's not a word, then Ace is officially making it one—than he initially thought if he hadn't consciously perceived his fire's actions _at all_ until then. (True, he didn't usually pay them much mind either, but he's generally at least _somewhat_ aware of what they're damn doing regardless.)

Getting his flames back under control, soothing them like they were some disgruntled animal, Ace quickly checked the floor and nearest wall while taking deep breaths as he centered himself. Nothing appeared charred, though the smell of almost too-dry, treated wood had gotten stronger due to the heat of the fire around his legs. He kept some attention on the Zoan but the man never budged from his spot and remained silent for the minute or so it took the Logia to calm the flares.

"You weren't aware you were doing that, yoi?"

 _'No, because it wasn't_ me _doing it yoi_ ,' the fire-user snipped sarcastically. He chose to not comment aloud or acknowledge the question beyond a glare.

"I'm not saying anything against your control. From what I've seen, you're rather adept at wielding it for someone your age yoi." Ace stayed quiet, a little curious as to where the blond was going with this. Marco's gaze turned a touch thoughtful as the man looked away to stare at the wall across from him. "Even I experience difficulty with my Fruit when I'm overly tired. Wouldn't surprise me if it is the same for a Logia-type or even some Paramecia-types." The commander gave a half-shrug, turning back to Ace as he said, "Or, it could just be because my Fruit's a Mythical Zoan and not much is known about those yoi."

Ace's first thought was, ' _The bird's being real damn chatty_.' His second was, ' _Lu said something about him being "not right". Like the Fruit wasn't complete or some shit._ ' The latter had the teen making tiny chuckle under his breath. Who else, besides Ace's little dragon brother, would describe one of the strongest pirates under Whitebeard's command as a 'faulty Phoenix'? (At the time, that was followed by words of how Luffy would kick the pirate's ass if he tried to take Ace or Sabo again; spouting about how young Phoenixes knew to be wary of angering even newly-fledged Drakkón.)

The memory had Ace chuckling aloud, mind stuck imagining a grinning Luffy trying to eat a squawking blue Phoenix. Shuffling in the corner of his eye reminded him of the unwanted company and Ace worked to get his show of mirth under control. It took a tad more effort when a second glance revealed the odd look Marco was giving him, which nearly issued a second visit of the chuckle-bug.

Composure temporarily restored, because now Ace couldn't get that image out of his head, he said, "Control's fine, it does that whether I'm tired r'not." Spinning away, not looking at the older male, Ace started striding off before Marco could respond. "An' ya can tell Chef Guy we'll be knockin' him up for food in a day so _stop fuckin' followin' me_ , creeper bird!"

Either he'd shocked the other into silence or answered some question sufficiently (both doubtful), or, more likely, he'd ticked the other off enough to leave things alone. Whichever it may have been, Ace was gratified to find the Zoan no longer tailing him. He still took a more circuitous route back to his siblings just to be on the safe side.

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, hypnotism. How is that _not_ a kickass skill?! Congratulations to those who got the hint from Now You See Me (2). Is bomb what Merritt McKinney (Woody Harrelson) could do in those two movies. Would _kill_ to have that kinda skill/ability so I decided to live out that fantasy through Sabo. His bros have kickass abilities, why not him? Even the playing field a bit anyway. Also thought it something very beneficial and very like Sabo to have/develop since he later does cloak-and-dagger crap as one of the main officers of Dragon's Revolutionary Army.**

 **As for the unending drama that has unfolded in my life, thereby making it take so damn long to get this chapter out, well…**

 **First, work still kind of slow but bosses—yes, _multiple_ because being slow means we've had to let go a few people so now extra for me—have taken advantage to start training me in various side-jobs to help things run more smoothly. For them. Which means _more_ work and _less_ downtime for moi. (Huh. 'Moil' is a word. Who'd a thunk. …What's 'moil' mean? *searches dictionary* Hmmm, might use that later through Sabo…) Good news: more work equals more money (for me). Always a good thing, money. Bad news: more work equals less time to work on fun activities like writing.**

 **Second, friend who is like a sister because she married someone I consider my unofficially adopted brother moved in with me (temporarily) with her two adorable little kids a few months ago. Has been absolutely hectic with a two-year-old little boy (who's almost an exact carbon-copy of his father) that's practically the Energizer Bunny incarnate running about, plus adorable little (now) three-month-old girl. Either busy on take-home work from office or busy with kids when I get home nowadays because I watch them when she goes to nursing school/work. Weekends aren't much better but family will be more available to help in next week or so, so more free time on my hands then. Yay! (BTW, little nephew and niece are positively precious and I love them to bits…but this has _got_ to be the best method of birth control there is. Seriously. _Nothing_ will swear a person into practicing every form of safe sex or being super careful in a relationship, quickly and religiously, like taking care of two toddlers. Haven't had a decent night's sleep in ages and I feel like _I'm_ married to my unofficial-sister-in-law instead of my unofficially-adopted-brother with how we coordinate plans with each other.**

 **Third, amidst all this I have also had to put down my cat who'd been with me since August '99. She'd been in great health up until early spring when she seemed to have caught a cold. Wouldn't be the first time, except none of the previous remedies worked more than briefly and she would get slightly better before growing sick again. About a month ago she developed a slight wheeze that didn't fade and the vet gave me some meds that were supposed to alleviate it. Helped some, but wheeze never left. She'd started to grow alarmingly thin at this point so I took her to another vet who diagnosed her as having cancer in her throat and nasal passages and also experiencing problems with her liver. Vet basically said the kindest thing at this point was to put her down because she was too old to undergo any other potentially helpful surgery/medication. Took my sweet baby in the next day after cuddling with her all night like usual-she was a real cuddlebug, refused to sleep anywhere but with me whenever I'm home and has booted people off the bed so she doesn't have to share cuddles with me with anyone else.**

 **Fourth, barely a week after I had to put my baby down and spend time moping as I worked and took of the kids, my sisters decided it was the perfect time to get a new kitty for me. (Again, they didn't even wait a week people. Apparently, they couldn't stand to see me sad and thought a new cat would do the trick.) Lo and behold, six days later they show up with a little fuzzy black and white kitty (mostly black) on my doorstep, hold the kitten up to my face, and shout: "Your new kitty's so cute, isn't she?" I stared at them, then the cat, then them, and said, "It's only been six days. You couldn't wait for me to finish grieving first?" They told me they were tired of hearing about how I'd been having even more trouble sleeping since my cat died from our unofficial-sister-in-law (the tattletale) and figured this would help me. Named new kitty Aria, eleven weeks old now, and she's an even bigger cuddlebug than my other cat was. Helps that Aria's nothing like her when she was a kitten either. At first was apprehensive about accepting Aria because I didn't want to feel like I was just using her as a substitute for the cat I just lost. Not a problem, both are cuddle monsters but Aria's far more adventurous and daring than my other baby was. So, in addition to taking care of two toddlers and baby-proofing the place as much as possible, I've now had to go through and kitten-proof things as well. It's almost like taking care of three kids, I swear.**

 **Fifth, shrimping season (which is a measly two days) was approaching and there was a lot of work needed to prepare. Getting fishing licenses, checking the engine and inner-workings of our boat, prepping bait, prepping shrimp traps, recruiting bodies for limits, planning for where to drop the pots, etc. Was spending a lot of time working on the boat after de-winterizing it because we needed to add wiring for a new pot-puller we got (which is _bomb_!), fix some of the loose screws on drawer covers, get a person down to look at a broken latch to one of the pull-out drawers (wouldn't latch open or close so we duct taped it first time out shrimping), flush out the toilet system (nasty but necessary), and service other details that are required after it sits in the water or engines run for so long.**

 **Sixth, and most annoying, is that I found out that tooth implant I've had for some time was done incorrectly and needs to be redone. Got the peg and post removed, gum and bone graft done, new post put in, and stitches removed after tooth and gum-graft sites healed enough. Now have another appointment coming up in a couple weeks (if that) to see how well the implant site has healed and then I get to schedule another appointment for the gum-shaping that needs to be done. After that/those appointments, I get another where we map out how the fake-tooth is gonna look and get a retainer to help hold the shaped-gum until the peg is ready. If I'm lucky and heal fast, I should have a new, fully operable implant by the end of September. Whoopee.**

 **Seventh, am both dreading and looking forward to early July because I finally get the stupid plate and screws taken out of my foot from my last operation. Stupid things have been making it hurt like shit from how much I've been on it lately and the rain/cold don't help anything! Once they're taken out, it'll be three days of downtime followed by some soreness for a bit. But hey! They'll be _gone_!**

 **So that's my life in a nutshell thus far this new year. Woot woot. Hope it's been better for you all because I'm dragging at the end of my rope right now. And don't worry, next chapter won't take nearly as damn long to get out to ya.**

 **Speaking of next chapter: if you could dye Marco's hair any color, what would it be? And Thatch doesn't like spiders and ghosts/paranormal stuff, but should I add something else? Decided Rakuyo and Kingdew are afraid of mice/rats—thought it would be kinda funny to see someone of Kingdew's size running from a mouse and threw in Rakuyo for shits n' giggles. Plus, yes, Fossa is one of those people who sometimes have fun twisting people's words to sound a little inappropriate.**

 **TERMS:**

 **Jól'tés —[jōl-tā-ss] Term used when a Drakkón is claiming something as being theirs (though not necessarily that they "own" it). As this term always carries a possessive connotation, it can be easily translated to mean "mine" or "belongs/belonging to This One".**


End file.
